On Friday, Yaroslav Hunka, a 98 years-old Ukrainian Nazi veteran who fought in the ranks of the 14th Waffen Grenadier Division of the Nazi SS during the Second World War, was given a standing ovation by the entire Canadian parliament.
Hunka’s recognition happened as the Speaker of the House of Commons, Anthony Rota, was giving introductory remarks prior to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s address to the Canadian parliament. On Sunday, Rota apologized for his decision to invite Hunka.
Trudeau’s office claimed, in turn, that neither the Canadian prime minister nor Zelensky’s delegation were notified in advance of the invitation of Hunka.
"Such a sloppy attitude towards memory, and memory should be preserved in relation to the Nazis, no matter how old they were, there is no statute of limitations for these crimes ... such sloppiness, of course, is outrageous. It is outrageous," Peskov told reporters.
Earlier in the day, Russian Ambassador to Canada Oleg Stepanov told Sputnik that he considers the honoring of Ukrainian Nazi veteran Yaroslav Hunka in the Canadian parliament not a mistake, but a consequence of impunity of Nazi criminals.