The official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova said that despite the protests by the public, Jewish organisations and Russians living in Canada, the Ottawa authorities have refused to take any steps to eradicate a shameful phenomenon like memorials to Nazi criminals from among Ukrainian collaborators who fought in the 14th Waffen-SS (Galician) Division.
There are monuments in different cities, including Edmonton, the capital of the Province of Alberta, where a bust has been installed to SS Hauptsturmfuhrer Roman Shukhevich, who was commander of the 201st Waffen-SS Schutzmannschaft Battalion, as well as to those from the above Galician Division who took part in massacres. the recent high-profile incident, involving some unidentified people, who used red paint to write on this, so called, “memorial” the words true Nazi and Nazi monument, has sparked again a discussion on the unacceptability of glorifying Nazi butchers in Canada, a country that fought against Nazism as part of the anti-Hitler coalition.
The diplomat noted that the majority of Canadians do not sympathise with Stepan Bandera and other Ukrainian warlords who fought with him, to whom the Canadian authorities gave shelter in the wake of WWII. however, quite a few politicians, including some cabinet members, openly support ultra-nationalism with a Russophobic tinge that is being preached by the incumbent regime in Kiev. it is not surprising therefore that the calls by the Canadian Jewish community, including well-known NGOs like B’nai B’rith and the Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Centre, to get rid of Nazi symbols have remained a voice in the wilderness.
in addition to this, the media and history textbooks are being used to inculcate “the only true” opinion, which is that Nazi accomplices led by Stepan Bandera and Roman Shukhevich allegedly fought for the independence of Ukraine. at the official level, Nazi Germany is being blasphemously equated to the Soviet Union, which insults the memory of the 27 million Soviet people who lost their lives fighting for the victory over Nazism and also spoils relations between Russia and Canada.
Russia are calling on the Canadian authorities, who speak about their commitment to human rights and democracy and pay lip service to the criticism of any manifestation of xenophobia and anti-Semitism, to take real and effective steps towards the historical truth.
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