Senior Canadian official stirs controversy after attending “Russia Day“ celebrations

The federal government is under fire after Yasemine Heinebecker, deputy chief of protocol at Global Affairs Canada, attended Russian Independence Day celebrations at the country’s embassy in Ottawa even as the invasion of Ukraine is still ongoing. “No Canadian representative should have attended the event hosted at the Russian embassy and no Canadian representative will attend this kind of event again,“ Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly said in a Twitter post. Abigail Bimman explains how else Joly is now responding, and what questions remain unanswered.