Head of Canadian Ukrainian group defends man who fought for unit created by Nazis

The president of the Ukrainian National Federation of Canada is defending a Second World War veteran of a Nazi unit who was recently lauded as a hero in Canada’s Parliament.

Jurij Klufas has not met 98-year-old Yaroslav Hunka but says the treatment the veteran is getting is unfair.

He says Hunka was a soldier who understood he was fighting for Ukraine — not Germany — and that countries, including Canada, have cleared his division of war crimes.

Hunka received a standing ovation in the House of Commons on Sept. 22, leading to international criticism after it was revealed he had fought with a mostly volunteer unit created by the Nazis to help fight the Soviet Union.