Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky shakes his fist in recognition of Yaroslav Hunka, portrayed as a hero of Ukraine’s independence from the Russians by Speaker of the House Anthony Rota in the presence of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, in Ottawa, September 22, 2023. PATRICK DOYLE / AP
The sequence could have been perfect if it hadn’t been marred by a gigantic misstep: an accidental homage to a former SS man in the Canadian House of Commons that inadvertently linked the Ukrainian president. On September 22, Volodymyr Zelensky made his first visit to Canada since the Russian invasion, providing a welcome diplomatic break to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who has been in a standoff with India after denouncing the Indian government’s involvement in the killing of a Sikh in June had Canadian.
The Ukrainian leader warmly thanked his hosts for their unwavering support since the beginning of the war, saying: “Canada [avait] always been on the right side of history. “Our government will stand by your side for as long as necessary,” assured Justin Trudeau, announcing $650 million (€452 million) in additional aid in addition to the $8.9 billion (€6.2 billion). the Ukraine. that Canada has already committed to paying since February 2022.
Outside Parliament in Ottawa, hundreds of Canadians of Ukrainian descent showed their support by chanting and waving yellow and blue flags. With 1.4 million members, this community represents the largest Ukrainian diaspora in the world after the community based in Russia.
Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland, who is of Ukrainian descent on her mother’s side, had tears in her eyes as she hugged the Kiev leader.
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But two days later, on Sunday, September 24, House Speaker Anthony Rota had to issue a press release apologizing “to Jewish communities across Canada and around the world.” During the Ukrainian President’s speech, Parliament was actually invited to give a standing ovation to an old man present in the audience and was described by Anthony Rota as a “World War II veteran who fought for Ukraine’s independence against the Russians and who supports the troops “Even today, even at the age of 98.” President Zelensky raised his fist in recognition. The ace. It turns out that the “Ukrainian and Canadian hero” actually fought in the Second World War in a military formation of the Third Reich that was accused of war crimes. Jaroslaw Hunka belonged to the 14th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS, the military wing of the Nazi Party, a Ukrainian corps under German command that was also called the “SS Galizien” (SS Galizien).
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