Canada refused to extradite former SS man Yaroslav Gunko (Hunku), who was honored in the Canadian parliament, to Russia.
MIA Rossiya Segodnya reports this, citing a source in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation.
How Canada refused to extradite Gunko to Russia
The Russian Ambassador in Ottawa Oleg Stepanov announced the transfer of Gunko’s extradition request to Canada in early February.
The Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation charged Gunko in absentia with genocide of the civilian population of the USSR during the Second World War.
According to the investigation, from February 23 to February 28, 1944, Gunko and his colleagues killed at least 500 Soviet citizens in the village. Guta Penyatskaya (Lviv region of the Ukrainian SSR).
Among those killed were Jews and Poles. People were shot and burned in their houses and churches.
As the Russian Foreign Ministry reported today, Canada refused to extradite Gunko, citing the absence of an extradition treaty.
They formally refused our request for extradition, citing the absence of an extradition treaty between our countries, – the interlocutor said.
Honoring an SS veteran in Canada
In September 2023, Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky visited the Canadian Parliament. Among others, 98-year-old Gunko was invited to the meeting.
He was introduced as a Ukrainian-Canadian veteran who fought for Ukrainian independence against the Russians during World War II. The audience greeted Gunko with an ovation.
When it turned out that Gunko fought in “Galicia,” a scandal broke out.
The Speaker of the House of Commons, Anthony Rota, took responsibility for inviting the former SS man to parliament and resigned. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau apologized.
Earlier it was reported that Kamala Harris would serve as US President instead of Joe Biden.
