Canada urges Iran to send downed airliner's black boxes to France

Justin Trudeau said Canada was the final destination for 138 of the 176 of the jet’s passengers

Mourners attend a vigil at the University of Toronto for the victims of a Ukrainian passenger jet which crashed in Iran. Reuters

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy lays flowers to commemorate victims of the Ukraine International Airlines Boeing 737-800 plane crash, at a memorial in Boryspil International airport outside Kiev. Reuters

A candlelight vigil held at the Edmonton Legislature building in memory of the victims of a Ukrainian passenger plane that crashed in Iran. Reuters

A woman mourns outside the Alberta Legislature Building in Edmonton, Alberta, during a vigil for those killed after a Ukrainian passenger jet crashed. AP

Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau attends a news conference about flight PS752 from Tehran to Kiev that crashed shortly after takeoff, in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Reuters

A candle is placed on a table bearing photos of some of the victims of a Ukraine International Airlines passenger flight that crashed after takeoff near Tehran, Iran. AP

Mourners place candles and photographs outside the Alberta Legislature Building in Edmonton, Alberta during a vigil for those killed after a Ukrainian passenger jet crashed. AP

Victims of the Ukraine crash in Iran, University of Alberta professors Mojgan Daneshmand and Pedram Mousavi, pose in an undated family photo in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Reuters

A victim of the Ukraine International Airlines crash in Iran, Dr Parisa Eghbalian poses with her husband Dr Hamed Esmaeilion at their dentistry practice in Aurora, Ontario, Canada. Reuters

A man places flowers at a memorial for the victims of the Ukraine International Airlines Boeing 737-800 crash in the Iranian capital Tehran, at the Boryspil airport outside Kiev. AFP

Photographs of student victims of a Ukrainian passenger jet which crashed in Iran are seen during a vigil at University of Toronto. Reuters

Victims of the Ukraine International Airlines crash in Iran, Negar Borghei and Alvand Sadeghi pose in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Reuters

Attendees wipe away tears during a memorial service at Western University in London, Ontario on January 8, 2020 for the four graduate students who were killed in a plane crash in Iran. AFP

Members of Toronto's Iranian community attend a vigil in Toronto to mourn victims of Ukraine International Airlines Flight PS752 that crashed after takeoff near Tehran, Iran. AP

Flowers and candles are placed in front of the portraits of the flight crew members of the Ukraine International Airlines Boeing 737-800 plane that crashed in Iran, at a memorial at the Boryspil International airport outside Kiev. Reuters

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Friday urged Iran to hand over black boxes from last week's downed airliner to France, saying it has one of the few laboratories capable of properly examining them.

"Iran does not have the level of technical expertise and mostly the equipment necessary to be able to analyse these damaged black boxes quickly," Mr Trudeau said.

So, he told a press conference, "the right place to send those black boxes to get proper information from them and in a rapid way" is France, adding "that is what we're encouraging the Iranian authorities to agree to".

"There are only a few places, like France, that have laboratories that can do it," the prime minister explained.

France has offered its services and there is a "beginning of a consensus" to send the significantly damaged flight data and cockpit recorders from the downed Ukrainian airliner there, he said.

Earlier, Ukraine's foreign minister, Vadym Prystaiko, said Iran was ready to hand over the black boxes to his country.

Mr Prystaiko said Tehran would grant a team of investigators from Iran and Canada - as the countries that lost the most nationals - access to the recorders.

"After that, the Iranian side is ready to separately transfer the black boxes to Ukraine," he said.

Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752 crashed last week shortly after takeoff from Tehran, killing all 176 people on board.

Ottawa has said 57 of the passengers were Canadian citizens.

Mr Trudeau said on Friday that another 29 were permanent residents and that Canada was the final destination for 138 of the 176 passengers and crew on the Kiev-bound plane, including visitors and students.

After initial denials, Iran admitted it shot down the plane "unintentionally" while on high alert after firing missiles at US troops stationed in Iraq in retaliation for the killing of top Iranian commander Qassem Suleimani in a US drone strike.

In Ottawa, Mr Trudeau also pledged interim funds for families of the Canadian victims of the crash, but said he ultimately expects Iran to pony up full compensation.

He said his government would provide Can$25,000 (Dh 70,000) to each family of the Canadian victims - both citizens and permanent residents - to assist with funeral arrangements, travel to Iran and other costs.

"I want to be clear: we expect Iran to compensate these families," Mr Trudeau said.

But, he added, "I have met them and they can't wait weeks. They need support now".

No Canadian remains so far recovered from the crash have been repatriated. Mr Trudeau said he expects the first to arrive in Canada "in the coming days".

Meanwhile in Oman, Canadian Foreign Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne had his first face-to-face meeting with Iran's foreign minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif.

According to a readout, Champagne pressed his counterpart to heed calls for a "thorough and transparent investigation" of the crash, and "full access" for Canadian officials to provide consular services and assist in victim identification.

Canada severed diplomatic ties and shuttered its embassy in Tehran in 2012.