Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak today expressed confidence that the wreckage of the missing Flight MH370 would be found as the grieving families of the 239 people, including five Indians, on board hoped for some kind of closure on the second anniversary of the world's biggest aviation mystery.
However, Najib said Malaysia, Australia and China would hold a tripartite meeting to decide the next move if the Malaysia Airlines plane is not found in the 120,000 sq km area in the southern Indian Ocean that is currently being searched by a team led by Australia.
"If it is not, then Malaysia, Australia and China will hold a tripartite meeting to determine the way forward," Najib said in a statement.
Flight MH370 disappeared on March 8, 2014 while en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing with 239 passengers and crew on board. There were five Indians on the flight.
The plane is believed to have ended its journey in the southern Indian Ocean.
The international investigation team probing the missing flight MH370 issued a statement today on the Boeing 777's disappearance, indicating that what happened remains a mystery.
"To date, the MH370 wreckage has still not been found despite the continuing search in the South Indian Ocean," said the statement, which also offered no new insights into what happened to the plane.
"The discovery of debris on the island of Reunion last July provided further evidence that, as I announced on 24th March 2014, Flight MH370 tragically ended in the southern Indian Ocean. But we know that neither the passage of time, nor this evidence, will comfort those whose grief cannot be assuaged," Najib said in his statement.
"The disappearance of MH370 was without precedent, and the search has been the most challenging in aviation history. Amidst some of the world's most inhospitable terrain - at depths of up to six kilometres, across underwater mountain ranges, and in the world's fastest currents - the search team has been working tirelessly to find MH370's resting place," Najib added.
He said that despite all these challenges, the Government remained committed to solving the "agonising mystery for the loved ones of those who were lost in the tragedy".
"On this most difficult of days, our thoughts and prayers are with the families of those who will never be forgotten," he added.
Indian national KS Narendran, 52, whose wife Chandrika Sharma was on the plane said it was important to find out what happened so that air travel would be safer than what it is today.
"Not knowing is not an easy position to be in," he was quoted as saying by Star newspaper.
