Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Jolie says Ottawa is summoning the Russian ambassador to condemn both Moscow’s attacks on Ukrainian civilians and her Russian counterpart’s recent anti-Semitic comments about the war.
Speaking alongside UK Foreign Secretary James Cleverley after a bilateral meeting in Toronto on Wednesday, Jolie said the move was in response to last weekend’s missile strike on an apartment building in Dnipro, which killed at least 45 Ukrainians in at least -the deadly civilian attack of last spring’s war.
Jolie raised past attacks on civilians and mass graves uncovered after Russian troops were forced to withdraw from Ukrainian towns such as Bucha, Irpin and Mariupol, which she said were the result of Moscow’s “increasingly desperate” attempts to achieve victory for almost a year then his invasion.
“We will ensure that those responsible for the horrific scenes and crimes in these cities and those across Ukraine are held accountable for their crimes,” she said.
Story continues below the ad
Read more: Canada to send Ukraine 200 more armored vehicles as Anand makes surprise visit to Kyiv
Read this: New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern will step down in February ahead of an election in the fall
She added that Kremlin officials should also be brought “face to face” after Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov compared the West’s response to its invasion of Ukraine to the Holocaust earlier on Wednesday.
“We will continue to stifle the Russian regime with coordinated sanctions and we will continue to counter Russia’s lies with facts.
Lavrov drew sharp criticism on Wednesday after he said the United States had assembled a coalition of Western allies to resolve the “Russian question” in the same way that Adolf Hitler sought a “final solution” to exterminate Europe’s Jews.
“Just as Hitler wanted a ‘final solution’ to the Jewish question, now if you read Western politicians … they clearly say that Russia must suffer a strategic defeat,” Lavrov told reporters in Moscow.
3:41 It is dangerous to underestimate Russia, warns NATO chief at Davos 2023.
The “Final Solution” was Hitler’s plan for the Holocaust, which resulted in the systematic murder of six million Jews as well as members of other minorities.
Story continues below the ad
Lavrov’s comments come amid rising anti-Semitism around the world. The latest annual report by Tel Aviv University found a sharp increase in anti-Jewish attacks in 2021 compared to recent years, especially in the US, Canada and Europe.
The report highlighted data from B’nai Brith Canada, which recorded a 40-year peak in violent incidents against Jews in 2021.
Earlier on Wednesday, Jolie said on Twitter that Lavrov’s comments were “extremely disrespectful to the victims and survivors of the Holocaust.” She also pointed out that, unlike the Jews during World War II, Russia “was the aggressor. Not the victim.
Popular
-
Amazon layoffs: The company will cut nearly 18,000 jobs in Canada, the United States and Costa Rica
-
Zellers returns to Canada this spring. Here are the locations
Let’s be very clear: the Russian regime is the aggressor. Not the victim.
Lavrov’s comments, following previous anti-Semitic remarks, are extremely disrespectful to the victims and survivors of the Holocaust. 🇨🇦 will always continue to stand against hate and those who manipulate the truth.
— Melanie Joly (@melaniejoly) January 18, 2023
The Russian Canadian Embassy responded in a statement by highlighting Russia’s role in defeating Germany during that war and liberating the Auschwitz concentration camp, an unrelated fact of which Jolie “seems to be unaware.”
Story continues below the ad
The Kremlin has repeatedly insisted that its invasion of Ukraine is aimed at “denazifying” the democratic country, a claim the embassy repeated in its statement.
Russia/USSR was the decisive force behind saving Europe from Nazism and ending the genocide. FM @melaniejoly seems to be unaware of this as well as completely forgetting 🇨🇦 and 🇷🇺 have been allies since WW2.❗Russia will not allow neo-Nazism to rise and spread in Europe and elsewhere. pic.twitter.com/6jaAVM1P7v
— Russia in Canada (@RussianEmbassyC) January 18, 2023
The White House also condemned Lavrov’s analogy.
“How dare he compare anything to the Holocaust, anything. Let alone a war that they started,” National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters on Wednesday.
“It’s almost so absurd it’s not worth responding to, other than the really offensive way he tried to present us with regards to Hitler and the Holocaust.”
Cleverly was wrapping up a two-day visit to Canada and the US that included a meeting with Jolie where Ukraine, Iran and other global events were discussed. A day earlier, he held similar meetings with US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken and other officials in Washington.
Story continues below the ad
The UK is seeking to reposition itself as a leader in Western support for Kyiv after a protracted political crisis that led to the ousting of two prime ministers, Boris Johnson and Liz Truss, in just two months last year.
1:27 Canada will send Ukraine 200 more armored vehicles: Anand
Britain’s new prime minister, Rishi Sunak, has pledged to step up support for the war effort, including sending battle tanks to Ukraine and other military aid. Cleverly said on Wednesday that aid must flow faster from Western allies to the front lines to help Ukraine push back the Russian army.
The UK also hosted military training for Ukrainian fighters using Western-supplied equipment, in which Canada also took part.
Jolie said on Wednesday that “additional Canadian expertise” would join the UK Government’s Information Cell, which is working to counter Russian disinformation being spread online.
Story continues below the ad
Defense Minister Anita Anand used a surprise visit to Ukraine on Wednesday to announce that Canada is sending 200 more armored vehicles to help defend the country.
The federal government says Canada has provided approximately $5 billion in military, financial and humanitarian aid since Russian forces crossed into Ukraine on February 24, 2022.
— With files from Reuters and The Canadian Press
© 2023 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
Add Comment