“I witnessed first-hand the brutality of Russia’s illegal war,” Trudeau said.

Kyiv:

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Sunday that Russian leader Vladimir Putin was responsible for “war crimes”, during a visit to Ukraine where he met with President Volodymyr Zelensky.

“It is clear that Vladimir Putin is responsible for heinous war crimes,” Trudeau said at a news conference with the Ukrainian leader.

“There must be accountability,” he added, after a G7 meeting including the Ukrainian president.

Earlier in the day, Trudeau visited Irpin outside Kyiv, a city devastated by fierce fighting between Ukrainian and Russian forces before its occupation in March by Moscow, the city’s mayor said.

“I witnessed first-hand the brutality of Russia’s illegal war,” he told reporters.

Irpin Mayor Oleksandr Markushyn posted pictures on an official social media channel with pictures of Trudeau writing that he “came to Irpin to see with his own eyes all the horror that the Russian occupiers had done to our city”.

Trudeau’s visit came on the same day US First Lady Jill Biden made an unannounced trip to Ukraine.

Markushyn thanked the prime minister for “the support shown by Canada to Ukraine today”.

“We believe in the continued cooperation between our countries for the reconstruction of Ukrainian cities after our victory,” he added.

Irpin counted around 60,000 residents before Russian President Vladimir Putin launched his attack on Ukraine on February 24.

Ukraine accuses Russian forces of atrocities against civilians — like those in Bucha, a town close to Kyiv — after the discovery of dozens of bodies wearing civilian clothes in areas held then abandoned by the Russian army.

Several Western political leaders including UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres have recently visited Irpin and other residential areas around the capital Kyiv where Russian forces were accused of killing hundreds of civilians.

Trudeau was joined by Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland and Foreign Minister Melanie Joly, who together also hoisted the maple leaf flag at Canada’s mission in Kyiv.

Canada “restarted operations in Kyiv today”, Trudeau said.

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