Statement by Minister of Foreign Affairs on anniversary of deportation of Crimean Tatars

May 18, 2020 - Ottawa, Ontario - Global Affairs Canada

The Honourable François-Philippe Champagne, Minister of Foreign Affairs, today issued the following statement:

“This year marks the 76th anniversary of the forced deportation of Crimean Tatars by Soviet authorities in 1944.

“Canada does not forget this tragedy and the suffering endured by the hundreds of thousands of children, women and men forcibly deported from their ancestral homeland.

“Canada stands with the Crimean Tatar people in honouring the memory of those killed and all who suffered.

 “Canada continues to be concerned by the ongoing human rights violations committed against Crimean Tatars in the Crimean Peninsula under Russian occupation, including the banning of the Mejlis – the self-governing body of the Crimean Tatars. We call on Russia to reverse this decision.

 “Canada will always stand up for Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.”