Watch the Moment Canada Gives Standing Ovation to Former Nazi SS Fighter

The Canadian Speaker of the House of Commons, Anthony Rota, celebrated a Ukrainian man who fought for the country’s independence during WWII.

However, it was later revealed that the veteran fought in the 14th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS.

The Speaker has since apologized, and many are furious over the incident.

Watch the standing ovation here:

Friday, Canadian Parliament honored a 98 year old Ukrainian immigrant who fought the Russians in WW2, Yaroslav Hunka.

He fought with the Nazis during the Third Reich as part of the 14th Waffen, aka SS Galincha.

Standing ovations for literal Nazis… pic.twitter.com/dgc8jWGSYH

— Clandestine (@WarClandestine) September 24, 2023

More from BBC News:

Yaroslav Hunka, 98, was sitting in the gallery and got a standing ovation in parliament after Mr Rota said he was a “hero” during a visit by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

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Canadian Jewish group CIJA said it was “deeply troubled” that a veteran of a Nazi division that participated in the genocide of Jews had been celebrated.

It said this should never happen again.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was with Mr Zelensky in parliament at the time.

Thousands of Ukrainians fought on the German side during the war, but millions more served in the Soviet Red Army.

In a statement, Mr Rota said that on 22 September “in my remarks following the address of the president of Ukraine, I recognised an individual in the gallery.

“I have subsequently become aware of more information which causes me to regret my decision to do so.”

Mr Rota said that “no one, including fellow parliamentarians and the Ukraine delegation, was aware of my intention or of my remarks before I delivered them. This initiative was entirely my own, the individual in question being from my riding [district] and having been brought to my attention.”

What surprises me is that such an influential person in the Canadian government can let such a huge mistake through.

It is even more baffling that the Ukrainian delegates did not know of his involvement with the Nazi party.

Do you think they didn’t know or chose to ignore it?

The anger that many Canadians are expressing is entirely justified.

No one wants to know that they gave a standing ovation to a Nazi who participated with an SS unit documented to have committed atrocities.

Did not one idiot in the stupid Canadian government realize that the Russians were ON OUR SIDE in WW2 when they gave a standing ovation to literal Ukrainian Nazi!!

They are cheering him because he fought the Russians. They were on our side. 🤦🏽‍♀️🤦🏽‍♀️🤦🏽‍♀️ how did not 1 person say it pic.twitter.com/kMb5T5KNaS

— leilani dowding 🌸🚜 ☮️ (@LeilaniDowding) September 25, 2023

She makes a good point in this Tweet.

This has so many red flags that it questions Candian leadership’s judgment.

I've seen some liberal and pro Ukrainian accounts trying to white wash SS 14th Waffen Division now ! ( yes we are this point now where people think they were good Nazis !) . So I'll list some of the atrocities this Ukrainian division did ; If you have a conscience; you will be… pic.twitter.com/gBjHg6MyV3

— Holocaust In Ukraine (@ShoahUkraine) September 25, 2023

Reminder that the lunatics up north just honored a literal NAZI in the public gallery who fought in WWII.

Zelensky and Trudeau loved it. https://t.co/1crCNiniUg

— Citizen Free Press (@CitizenFreePres) September 25, 2023

More from NBC News:

The issue of Nazis and far-right ideology is an especially touchy one for Ukraine.

One of the nebulous justifications given by Russian President Vladimir Putin for invading his former Soviet neighbor is that he wants to “denazify” Ukraine, which he says is being run by neo-Nazis enabled by the West.

There is little evidence for this claim. But Russian officials were quick to seize on Hunka’s ovation as proof of the far-right leanings of Ukraine and its backers.

Putin’s spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, called the spectacle “revolting” and accused the Canadians of having “such an uncareful attitude to memory,” during his daily briefing to journalists Monday.

“A whole new generation has grown up in Canada unaware of fascism and Nazi crimes,” he said, “and we can see Nazism resurrect here and there, like for example in Ukraine.”

Russia’s ambassador to Canada, Oleg Stepanov, said that inviting the former Nazi into Parliament was no accident, calling the Canadian government “essentially the personification of neoliberal fascism,” according to Russian news agency RIA.

And Russia’s permanent representative in Vienna, Mikhail Ulyanov, called it a “shameful day for Canada,” the news agency reported.

Like in many other countries, including Russia, Ukraine does have some far-right elements. Notably the Azov Battalion, which has been incorporated into the Ukraine National Guard, has a history of far-right and white supremacist insignia and beliefs.

Support for prominent World War II-era nationalist figures like Stepan Bandera also persists, with many revering him as a freedom fighter against the Soviets despite the fact he was also a Nazi collaborator.

Hey! But let’s keep sending money to Ukraine!

We have known for a while that Ukraine has been full of Nazi sympathizers.

This is just the icing on the cake.

We’ll see what happens to the Canadian Speaker.

Some predict he will declare his resignation soon.