The Joint Investigation Team, which includes Australia, will on Wednesday name individuals accused of being involved in shooting an anti-aircraft missile at the passenger plane as it flew over eastern Ukraine on 17 July in 2014.
Ukraine's Deputy Foreign Minister Olena Zerkal said the Russian military's "top brass" allowed the transfer of the Buk missile launcher to and from the area from the 53rd Anti-aircraft Brigades base in the Russian city of Kursk.
She indicated Russian officers will on Wednesday be named and charged in the Dutch city of Utrecht.
"The names will be announced. Charges will be brought," Mr Zerkal told news agency Interfax-Ukraine.
"After that, the Criminal Court of Schiphol (the Netherlands) will start working to consider this case.
"But until the court establishes their guilt, we cannot say they are guilty."
The deputy foreign minister also indicated charges could be laid later on those who gave the order to shoot and those who launched the missile.
"They (the suspects to be charged on Wednesday) are only the top," Ms Zerkal said.
"Naturally, then the number of people who are involved in this will be much larger than the four people who will be named."
The Dutch Broadcasting Foundation (NOS) reported that investigators have concluded the disaster was a tragic accident rather than being intentional, with the culprits attempting to conceal it afterwards.
"The JIT assumes that the downing of MH17 was a mistake," NOS reported on Wednesday.
"The plane may have been mistaken for an enemy aircraft."
Russia has indicated it won't provide legal assistance or hand over suspects.
However, if the suspects were convicted in absentia they would face Interpol arrest warrants if they ever left Russian territory.
Dutch criminal law expert Marieke de Hoon, from the Free University, said it's important for an independent court to rule on the evidence as well.
"That is important not only for the relatives but also for the state liability of Russia that is now being discussed," she told Dutch online newspaper NU.nl.
Mr Zerkal said that Australia and the Netherlands will soon hold a second round of talks with Russia over the legal ramifications of the charges and potential trial.
"So far this is an international legal responsibility. These are all complex processes, and they are treated in a very careful and balanced way, and, unlike us, they understand that international legal responsibility in international law cannot be handled in a hurry," she said.
There were 38 Australians, one New Zealander, 193 Dutch, 43 Malaysians and 12 Indonesians aboard MH17, as well as 10 British passengers.
The other passengers were from Germany, Belgium, the Philippines and Canada.
The Joint Investigation Team was formed in 2014 by Australia, Belgium, Malaysia, the Netherlands and Ukraine to investigate collaboratively.
SOURCE AAP - SBS
