Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau apologized for the ‘deeply embarrassing’ standing ovation the Canadian parliament gave to a Nazi SS veteran.
Liberal MP Anthony Rota has resigned as House of Commons Speaker after inviting a former Ukrainian soldier who fought in a Nazi division to Parliament.
Trudeau, 49, spent days scrambling for an answer as to why Nazi veteran Yaroslav Hunka was praised as a ‘hero’ by Canada’s Speaker of the House of Commons Anthony Rota on Friday.
The Nazi served in the 14th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS during World War II, but appeared alongside Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as he was welcomed in parliament as an apparent ‘Ukrainian hero.’
Three days after his parliament commended the Nazi, embattled Trudeau – who has also been locked in a bitter international feud with India in recent weeks – broke his silence to admit the ovation was a ‘mistake.’
‘Obviously it’s extremely upsetting that this happened. The Speaker has acknowledged his mistake and has apologized, but this is something that is deeply embarrassing to the Parliament of Canada and by extension to all Canadians,’ he told reporters on Monday.
Seconds after apologizing, Trudeau then pivoted as he railed against anti-Semitism and called for a ‘push back against Russian propaganda.’
NEW – Justin Trudeau blames Russian propaganda for Canadian Parliament honoring a Nazi.
“Obviously, it’s extremely upsetting that this happened… this is something that is deeply embarrassing to the Parliament of Canada…
It’s going to be really important that all of us push… pic.twitter.com/Zvk5ytkxmC
— KanekoaTheGreat (@KanekoaTheGreat) September 25, 2023