After the shootdown of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 in July 2014 , Pechtold explicitly voiced his support for economic expediency over ethical correctness by stating : " We are a small country , dependent on our exports , and unlike the United States , we can not always react from our moral high grounds . " In December 2017 , it was revealed that Pechtold received an apartment valued at 135,000 euros from Serge Marcoux , a former Canadian Ambassador , that was not listed on the gift register of the House of Representatives , with Pechtold justifying the lack of report by saying that he knew Marcoux from outside politics and that the apartment was a private gift which did not fall under the purview of the register
Malaysia Airlines Flight 17
Malaysia Airlines Flight 17
Alexander Pechtold