Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau presented this Wednesday his “ sincerest apologies » in front of Parliament after the scandal caused by the tribute paid, on the occasion of Volodymyr Zelensky’s visit, to a Ukrainian veteran who fought with the Nazis during the Second World War.
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“ I would like to express my sincere apologies for what happened on Friday and for the situation in which President Zelensky and the Ukrainian delegation were placed “, declared Justin Trudeau in front of Parliament.
On Friday, MPs from all parties, Justin Trudeau, his government and Volodymyr Zelensky, of Jewish faith, stood up to applaud Yaroslav Hunka, a 98-year-old Ukrainian veteran accused of having fought in the SS, ignoring the details of his pass. “ It was a terrible mistake and a violation of the memory of those who suffered cruelly at the hands of the Nazi regime », added the Canadian Prime Minister.
This statement comes the day after the resignation of the Speaker of the House of Commons of Canada, Anthony Rota. It was the latter who had Yaroslav Hunka applauded in the Canadian Parliament. According to the association defending the Jewish community in Canada, the Friends of the Simon Wiesenthal Center (FSWC), Yaroslav Hunka served in the 14th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS, a Nazi military unit whose crimes against humanity during the Holocaust are well documented.
A ” blatant error » taken up by Russian propaganda
This tribute was paid as it was the Ukrainian president’s first official visit to Canadian soil since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine began in February 2022. It is disturbing to think that this blatant error is being politicized by Russia and its supporters in order to spread false propaganda “, also underlined the Prime Minister. Russia in fact accuses the Ukrainian leaders of being “ neo-Nazis » and puts forward, as justification for war, the need to “ denazify ” his neighbour.
The Canadian episode therefore risks further fueling this rhetoric. The Russian Ambassador to Canada, Oleg Stepanov, spoke of “ scandalous commemoration “, asking the Canadian Prime Minister on Tuesday to also apologize to Russia for the “ multiple war crimes » committed by this SS brigade against the Russian people.
In Poland, the government has launched an investigation to verify whether this Ukrainian veteran had not committed crimes on its territory, with a view to his possible extradition.
Read alsoCanada: resignation of the president of Parliament after tribute to an ex-Nazi during Zelensky’s visit
(With AFP)