Russia is “weaponizing” the mistake of inviting and honoring Yaroslav Hunka to Parliament, warned Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland on Thursday.
Freeland told reporters that Canada needs to strongly oppose Russian President Vladimir Putin’s comments on the standing ovation given to Hunka in the House of Commons. Hunka was a Ukrainian man who fought for a Nazi unit during World War II.
During a speech at the Valdai Discussion Club in Sochi, Putin criticized the standing ovation and stated that it validated Russia’s belief in the need to “de-Nazify” Ukraine, which is one of the justifications for Russia’s invasion of the country.
Freeland emphasized the importance of recognizing Russian propaganda and urged Canada to push back against Putin’s statements and actions.
“Putin accused former House speaker Antony Rota of grouping together Nazi collaborators, SS troops, and the current Ukrainian military who are fighting against Russia,” Reuters reported.
Responding to Putin’s comments, Freeland acknowledged the mistake made by Rota in inviting Hunka but emphasized the need to prevent Putin from exploiting that mistake.
“We can decide how effective Vladimir Putin is at weaponizing that mistake,” Freeland said.
The invitation of Hunka to Parliament resulted in the resignation of Rota as House speaker. He has now been replaced by Greg Fergus, the first Black speaker in Canadian history.
Trudeau has apologized for the invitation and recognition of Hunka, who was referred to as a Canadian and Ukrainian hero and received two standing ovations, including from Trudeau and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who was visiting and spoke in Canada’s Parliament. Zelenskyy himself is Jewish.
Jewish groups are now advocating for the declassification of the Deschenes Report, which investigated Nazis who came to Canada after the end of World War II. While parts of the report have been released, others still remain secret.
Recently, Governor General Mary Simon also apologized for granting the Order of Canada to Peter Savaryn in 1987, who served in the same Waffen-SS unit.
— With files from Reuters.
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