The Canadian Parliament gave a standing ovation to a literal Nazi on Friday, in case you’re wondering how the West’s proxy war against Russia in Ukraine is doing lately.
Led by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and visiting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, the assembly offered a standing ovation to Yaroslave Hunka, a Ukrainian Nazi who fought in World War II as part of one of the infamous Waffen-SS units. Zelensky even pumped his fist multiple times in solidarity with the former Nazi fighter.
Speaker Anthony Rota introduced Hunka and even thanked him for his service, vaguely describing him as “a Ukrainian Canadian war veteran from the Second World War who fought for Ukrainian independence against the Russians.” The admission that Hunka fought against the Soviets, who were allied with the United States against the Nazis for the majority of the war, probably should have been a hint.
Hunka’s Waffen-SS unit, which was comprised of ethnic Ukrainians, has been “accused of killing Polish and Jewish civilians, and [was] visited by SS leader Heinrich Himmler in 1944,” according to the Independent. Himmler, arguably Adolf Hitler’s No. 2 and the man responsible for centralizing the Nazis’ system of concentration camps, formed the Waffen-SS force that would become infamous during the war. Multiple Waffen-SS units were “proven to have committed numerous war crimes, most notoriously at Oradour-sur-Glane, Marzabotto and in the Malmedy massacre,” notes the Jewish Virtual Library.
The Canadian Parliament was justifiably berated for celebrating the Nazi veteran as a “Ukrainian hero and a Canadian hero.” The nonprofit Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Center for Holocaust Studies issued a statement, urging that “an apology is owed to every Holocaust survivor and veteran of the Second World War who fought the Nazis, and an explanation must be provided as to how this individual entered the hallowed halls of Canadian Parliament and received recognition from the Speaker of the House and a standing ovation.”
Two days later, Rota apologized, claiming he and other officials were unaware of the Ukrainian’s affiliation with the Nazis — despite clearly knowing that Hunka fought “against the Russians.”
“In my remarks following the address of the President of Ukraine, I recognized an individual in the gallery. I have subsequently become aware of more information which causes me to regret my decision to do so,” Rota said in a statement.
A spokeswoman for Trudeau threw Rota under the bus, saying, “no advance notice was provided to the Prime Minister’s Office, nor the Ukrainian delegation, about the invitation or the recognition. The Speaker had his own allotment of guest seating at Friday’s address, which were determined by the Speaker and his office alone.” Neither Trudeau nor Zelensky has apologized for joining the applause.
