PM Tony Abbott announces that 50 AFP officers have been sent to London in preparation for going to Ukraine to secure the MH17 site.

PM Tony Abbott announces that 50 AFP officers have been sent to London in preparation for going to Ukraine to secure the MH17 site.

SECURITY experts have questioned the government’s decision to commit unarmed police officers to a security force for the MH17 crash site without significant and heavily armed back-up.

Prime Minister Tony Abbott announced that 50 Australian Federal Police had been pre-positioned in London in readines for the Ukraine mission.

But a former senior military officer and adviser to the Abbott Government said any mission should be supported by a United Nations Chapter Seven Resolution where police and soldiers were authorised — under clear and firm rules of engagement (ROE) — to use maximum force to protect themselves.

Under a softer Chapter Six Resolution UN forces could only respond after they were attacked.

The crash site is in the middle of a war zone and the scene of heavy fighting between pro-Russian separatists and Ukrainian forces who have stepped up their offensive since the Malaysia Airlines tragedy.

Australia sent unarmed police to East Timor in 1999 and they were forced to flee for their lives as the militias took control. Fortunately none were killed.

Mr Abbott said full details for the police deployment, including security support, were still being worked on.

“There is potential for difficulty,” Mr Abbott said.

The former senior officer said the Ukraine mission would require a mix of capabilities with a “soft front” made up of unarmed police and a “hard back” that included well armed infantry troops and armoured vehicles.

He said a total force of about 1000 would be able to secure the 125km/sq site.

In addition to the main forces he said a hostage rescue unit that included elite SAS troops equipped with helicopters, logistics, liaison and headquarters officers would also be required.

The force would probably be led by a Dutch officer with an Australian as deputy commander and would include elements from all nations affected by MH-17 including The Netherlands, Australia, Malaysia, Indonesia, the UK, Germany, Belgium, the Philippines, Canada and New Zealand.

Officers from Australia and the Netherlands developed close ties during their time together in Oruzgan Province in Afghanistan.

“Given the amount of weaponry in the area there would also be a need for something very tough not too far away in case things go pear shaped,” he said.

That might include Dutch Apache attack helicopters and a heavily armed force.

Australians have rarely been deployed to eastern Russia although a handful did serve during the Crimean War in modern-day Ukraine between 1854 and 1856.

About 150 Australian soldiers and one warship (the destroyer HMAS Swan) were also involved in the Russian Civil War between 1917 and 1921.

Chapter Seven UN Resolutions were invoked for the first Gulf War in 1990, East Timor in 1999, Afghanistan in 2001 and Libya in 2011.