ferris,
Once a situation has deteriorated to the point of avoiding action- and remember, controllers are aiming to keep separation standards, in this case 7nm- you are just grabbing for the first straw you can.
In an emergency, pilots are trained to follow pre-determined procedures. What perturbs me is your use of the phrase
"you are just grabbing for the first straw you can" with regard to the ATCO. Do you mean that no pre-determined procedures exist to cover this type of event? The report doesn't go into why the ATCO contacted the TU154M first instead of the B757-200. Under the circumstances, if the ATCO
had contacted the B757-200
first and instructed
them to descend, the outcome would have been just a drama as opposed to a crisis with lethal consequences...