Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has been exposed for inviting a man who fought in a Nazi unit in World War II to Parliament. It was previously believed that this was an error on the part of the speaker of the House, who resigned following the fiasco.
In September 2023, Canada’s Parliament faced international embarrassment after giving a standing ovation to Yaroslav Hunka, a 98-year-old veteran who fought in a Nazi unit for Ukraine in the Second World War. Hunka was even heralded as a Ukrainian and Canadian “hero” and received applause from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Trudeau for fighting communism.
Due to the seemingly obvious fact that a soldier fighting for Ukraine against Russia in World War II would of course be under the Nazi banner, the Liberal government quickly faced criticism for the ordeal.
Trudeau, who apologized at the time, saying it was “a mistake that deeply embarrassed Parliament and Canada,” allowed House Speaker Anthony Rota to take responsibility for the incident, and Rota later resigned, the BBC reported.
It has since been revealed that the prime minister himself invited the same man to attend a rally in Toronto, Ontario, to honor Zelenskyy during his visit to Canada. This event was on the same day he appeared in the Canadian Parliament.
The invitation was sent on behalf of Trudeau through the Office of Protocol of Canada as a formal invite from the prime minister.
“Dear Yaroslav Hunka,” the letter began. “The Right Honourable Justin Trudeau, Prime Minister of Canada, is pleased to invite you to a special event.”
The invitation featured an added disclaimer at the bottom, citing that guest recommendations were provided by groups like the Ukrainian Canadian Congress.
“Hundreds of Canadians were invited upon the recommendation of groups,” the citation noted. “The individual in question was submitted by the Ukrainian Canadian Congress. The individual did not attend [the rally].”
Canadian Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre called Trudeau a “hypocrite” and a “fake” after the invitation became public.
“We now learned that Justin Trudeau was lying again. He told us that bringing the former Nazi to the Ukrainian president’s visit was all the speaker’s fault; it had nothing to do with him. His office didn’t even know about it, he claimed. Well, now we know that was exactly false.”
The prime minister’s office confirmed to state broadcaster CBC News that Hunka was indeed invited to the rally in Toronto.
“Last September, there was a community event with the president of Ukraine in Toronto with over 1,000 people invited. Hundreds of Canadians were invited,” Trudeau’s office said. “The individual in question’s name was submitted by the Ukrainian Canadian Congress. The individual did not attend. Knowing what is known now, the individual shouldn’t have been invited,” the spokesperson added.
The letter was initially revealed through an Access to Information request, Canada’s version of a Freedom of Information Act request.
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