Canadian journalist from Odesa calls on Canada to expel Russian diplomats

Michael Bociurkiw, a Canadian journalist of Ukrainian descent who now lives in Odesa, has called on Canadian politicians and the government to expel Russian diplomats.

According to the National Post, Michael Bociurkiw emphasized that every other G7 country has done so since 2022, but Canada has not.

At the same time, the journalist criticized the fears of Canadian politicians about the mutual expulsion of Canadian diplomats from Russia.

"We know that Russia is waging a hybrid war here, including interference in the elections. Our friends in Ottawa seem to think that if we expel their diplomats, they will expel ours, and we will lose so much. We can involve other countries in our efforts," he emphasized.

He also called on the Canadian government to help rebuild Ukraine's destroyed independent media. He emphasized that martial law has forced the channels to work in one round-the-clock United News telethon - patriotic, monotonous and less and less interesting for viewers. Advertising is banned, funding is limited, and many journalists have been killed, drafted or fled.

It should be noted that in 2024, the international organization Reporters Without Borders appealed to the Ukrainian government to abandon the joint telethon "United News", which, in the organization's opinion, threatens pluralism in the coverage of information. The United News telethon was launched by TV channels after the full-scale Russian invasion. Its work was later approved by the government. Four private channels broadcast the news telethon: Inter, 1+1, We Are Ukraine, and ICTV, as well as two public channels, Suspilne and Rada. However, the Ukrainian government continued to fund the marathon in 2025 and 2026.

Кирило Бойко