The European Court of Human Rights has ruled that the case brought against Russia over the downing of flight MH17 can go ahead.

The court ruled that cases brought by Ukraine and the Netherlands against Russia over alleged human rights violations following the crash in the Luhansk and Donetsk regions of Ukraine in 2014, and the shooting down of MH17, were admissible.

The court said in a ruling: "Among other things, the court found that areas in eastern Ukraine in separatist hands were, from 11 May, 2014 and up to at least 26 January, 2022, under the jurisdiction of the Russian Federation."

The cases, which were filed before Russia's conflict with Ukraine, will now move on to the merits stage, which are expected to take at least a further year before a final decision is made.

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Speaking after the ruling on Wednesday, Dutch Foreign Minister Wopke Hoekstra said: "This is a clear signal to Russia," adding that it was "an important milestone."

The final decision is expected to have little impact on Russia, however, after its parliament voted to end the court's jurisdiction back in June. The court says it has jurisdiction in cases already started before Russia's withdrawal, but it has no way of enforcing its rules.

A Dutch court ruled last November that Moscow had "overall control" over the forces of the Donetsk People's Republic in Eastern Ukraine from mid-May 2014. Dutch judges handed down life sentences to two Russian men and a Ukrainian man for their role in the downing of the flight between Amsterdam and Kuala Lumpar, with the loss of 298 passengers and crew.

The Malaysian Airlines flight was shot down over separatist-held eastern Ukraine on July 17, 2014. The Netherlands filed its case with the ECHR in 2020, saying the shooting down of flight MH17 breached the European Convention on Human Rights.

Russia has denied any involvement in the downing of the aircraft.