Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Jolie said on Tuesday that the speaker of the House of Commons should resign after publicly praising a former Nazi soldier in parliament, even during a visit by President Volodymyr Zelensky, Reuters reported.

The Speaker of the House of Commons, Anthony Rota, apologized in Parliament on Monday but refused to resign. Last Friday, during the visit of the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyi Rota, he called the veteran a war hero, a Ukrainian emigrant.

But former military man Yaroslav Hunka, 98 years old, who was twice given a standing ovation by the deputies, turned out to have served in one of Adolf Hitler’s SS Waffen units during World War II. Russia called the incident scandalous.

“It was an embarrassment to the House of Representatives and to Canadians, and I think the president should listen to the members of the House of Representatives and resign,” Joly told reporters before a cabinet meeting. She was the first member of the liberal cabinet to demand Rota’s resignation.

Senior officials from the four main political parties in parliament are due to meet later on Tuesday to discuss the issue. If Rota refuses to resign, lawmakers may propose a formal vote of no confidence.

“It’s good that Speaker Roth has personally apologized and I’m sure he’s now thinking about how to ensure the dignity of the House going forward,” Prime Minister Justin Trudeau told reporters before a cabinet meeting.

The scandal overshadowed a visit by Zelenskyi, who thanked Canada for the billions of dollars in military aid — and more — that Ottawa provided to Ukraine after Russia invaded the country in February 2022.

The scandal fits well with the rhetoric of Russian President Vladimir Putin, who says he sent his army into Ukraine last year to “demilitarize and de-Nazify” the country, a charge Kiev and Western allies say is baseless.

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