Russia compares Canadian sanctions against journalists with Third Reich actions

MOSCOW

The Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman said on Saturday that Canadian sanctions against Russian journalists and entertainers can be compared to the “Third Reich’s attempt to annihilate ‘non-German spirit’.”

In a post on Telegram, Maria Zakharova recalled that Nazi Germany tried to “hush up the voice of reason” by burning books and prohibiting the work of the press.

“Nazi Mykhailo Khomiak could be proud of his granddaughter, Deputy Prime Minister of the (Canadian Prime Minister Justin) Trudeau government, Chrystia Freeland,” Zakharova said.

Freeland's maternal grandfather, Michael Chomiak (Mykhailo Khomiak), was the chief editor of the Ukrainian daily Krakivs'ki Visti (News of Krakow) for the Nazi regime.

Freeland initially denied her connection to Nazism, but reports in Western media showed that she had known of her grandfather's Nazi ties since at least 1996 when she helped edit a scholarly article for the Journal of Ukrainian Studies.

On Friday, Canada imposed sanctions on 38 Russian individuals and 16 legal entities due to Moscow's ongoing war on Kyiv.