Hillary Clinton, former US Secretary of State and a 2016 presidential contender, has called for tougher sanctions against Russia in view of the shooting down of a Malaysian passenger plane allegedly by Russia-backed Ukrainian separatist.

“We should work to bring our European allies together with us on tougher sanctions that would make it clear to (Russian President Vladimir) Putin that there is a price to pay for this kind of behaviour,” Clinton had said yesterday.

She said that the US should encourage Europeans to start immediately to make sure they are less dependent on Russian energy so they are not intimidated.

All 298 people on board Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur were killed when the Boeing 777 aircraft was apparently hit by a surface-to-air missile on Thursday and crashed into a rebel-controlled area near the Donetsk region of eastern Ukraine close to the Russian border.

During a question and answer session organised by the Facebook in the Silicon Valley, she said the tragic incident deserve a full investigation.

“I would like to see more support given to the Ukrainians to guard their borders and to protect themselves,” said Clinton, who is currently visiting the Silicon Valley.

The former First Lady, however, did not respond to question about the 2016 presidential campaign.

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