President Barack Obama speaks about the situation in Ukraine, Friday, July 18, 2014, in the Brady Press Briefing Room of the White House in Washington.AP

WASHINGTON –  President Obama said Friday at least one American was among the passengers killed aboard Malaysia Airlines flight 17, and said the plane appears to have been downed by a surface-to-air missile launched from Ukraine by pro-Russian separatists.

Calling it a “global tragedy,” Obama said the “the eyes of the world are on eastern Ukraine,” and pledged “we’re going to make sure that the truth gets out.”

U.S. authorities identified Quinn Lucas Schansman as the US-Dutch citizen that was on the doomed flight.

Obama also called for an immediate ceasefire in the region among Ukraine, Russia and Russian-backed separatists in order to conduct an investigation into the crash site in eastern Ukraine.
“We know they have received steady support from Russia, which includes heavy weapons and training … and includes anti-aircraft weapons,” Obama said.

He noted, though, it wasn’t the first time the separatists had shot down planes in the region, adding that a “steady flow of support from Russia” had included heavy weapons and anti-aircraft weapons.

He called for an immediate cease-fire to allow for a full investigation. Read More.