Moscow: Russia's defence minister has told his Malaysian counterpart that that Ukraine bore full responsibility for the Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 crash that left 298 dead.

"The crash happened in the airspace of Ukraine which bears full, total responsibility for what has happened," Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu told Hishammuddin Hussein, who was in Moscow on Wednesday to discuss the ongoing MH17 investigation.

Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu (right) welcomes his Malaysian counterpart Hishammuddin bin Tun Hussein (left) in Moscow. Credit:AFP

"I am convinced that if Ukraine solved its domestic problems without the use of armed forces, without the bloodshed there over the past month, without the use of heavy artillery ... this tragedy would not have happened," Shoigu said in televised remarks.

Hishammuddin arrived in Moscow a day after Dutch investigators released a preliminary report on the July 17 disaster.