France and Germany's joint statement plays into Russia's hands |
“Evidence collected by SMM suggests Russia and the separatists it backs bear responsibility for the targeting and downing of the LR UAV, blinding the mission at this particular spot."
However, mentioning inexistent "separatists" - the notion which is a product of Russian propaganda from the very beginning gives Russia an ideal pretext for plausible deniability. Russian hybrid and later military occupation from the start was orchestrated as a fake separatist uprising using propaganda and other deception tools.