OTTAWA, September 26. /TASS/. The Russian Embassy in Ottawa has sent a protest note to Global Affairs Canada, as well as to the offices of Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Speaker of the House of Commons Anthony Rota, over the appearance of a Ukrainian Nazi veteran in the Canadian parliament, Russian Ambassador to Canada Oleg Stepanov told a TASS correspondent.
"I sent yesterday [a note] with personal letters attached to the prime minister, the foreign ministry and the speaker of the House of Commons," the diplomat said. He specified that the embassy had not yet received any answer.
Earlier, the Associated Press agency published photos showing that during the speech of Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky in the Canadian Parliament on September 22, the audience greeted a 98-year-old Ukrainian nationalist, who served during World War II in the 1st Ukrainian Division, also known as the SS Galician Division. Rota earlier apologized for inviting the Ukrainian Nazi. He stressed that it was his initiative, of which the deputies and the Ukrainian delegation were allegedly unaware. The Office of the Canadian Prime Minister blamed the speaker for the incident.