A Japanese student showed up to graduation as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's lookalike, wearing his signature olive-coloured, snug-fit T-shirt and khaki trousers to show his support for Ukraine's fight against Russia.
Most graduation ceremonies in Japan feature graduates in suits or formal dress. But Kyoto University has its own tradition of students who opt for different attire on their special day.
This year, Zelenskyy was the star at the event.
"I am President Zelenskyy," the student told local TV network Yomiuri. He said it took him three months to grow his beard. He decided to be his lookalike for the graduation ceremony Friday, because "since December, when I was growing out my beard, I was told I look like President Zelenskyy."
His performance was not just a comical cosplay. The student, who goes by Amiki on Twitter, was holding a sign carrying messages expressing his support for Ukraine, along with a passage from Zelenskyy's speech in December at the U.S. Congress.
In the video from TV Osaka, he said he respects Zelenskyy as "the real man among men."
"We stand for Ukraine! Justice will prevail in the end, I hope so. Glory to Ukraine," he tweeted.
The student also held a wooden shamoji -- a rice serving spoon -- like the one that Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida presented to Zelenskyy as a gift during his secret trip to Kyiv last week. The rice paddle is a specialty of Hiroshima, where Kishida is from, and bears a prayer for victory, but was bitterly criticized by opposition lawmakers as "nonsense."
Giving a rice serving spoon to the leader of a country at war didn't seem appropriate, the student said. "Nonetheless, I'm happy if the Ukrainian people were pleased and the traditional prayer behind it was conveyed."
Ukrainian Ambassador Sergiy Korsunsky retweeted a scene from the video of the Zelenskyy lookalike, as well as the student's tweets showing solidarity for Ukraine.
Without having seen it, former Bank of Canada governor David Dodge believes that Tuesday's 2024 federal budget from Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland is 'likely to be the worst budget' in decades.
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A controversial former school trustee from B.C.'s Fraser Valley who described a political rival as a "strip-tease artist" during an election campaign has been ordered to pay her $45,000 for defamation.
Michael Gordon Jackson, the man on trial after being charged with contravention of a custody order for allegedly abducting his daughter in late 2021 to prevent her from getting a COVID-19 vaccine, called himself to the stand Monday.
Following the Iranian missile and drone strikes against Israel over the weekend, Canada should take the threat of Iran and potential escalation of the conflict seriously, one global affairs analyst says.
A couple who owned a Colorado funeral home where authorities last year discovered 190 decaying bodies were indicted on federal charges that they misspent nearly US$900,000 in pandemic relief funds on vacations, cosmetic surgery, jewelry and other personal expenses, according to court documents unsealed Monday.
The ship crash that destroyed Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge and left several people dead is now under federal criminal investigation, according to a U.S. official familiar with the matter.
The historic hush-money trial of Donald Trump got underway Monday with the arduous process of selecting a jury to hear the case charging the former U.S. president with falsifying business records in order to stifle stories about his sex life.
The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday let a Republican-backed law in Idaho that criminalizes gender-affirming care for transgender minors broadly take effect after a federal judge blocked it as unconstitutional.
All of Donald Trump's trials and the characters involved make for a complicated legal mess, particularly when the four criminal cases are added to Trump's civil liability for defamation and sexual misconduct and for business fraud. Here's what to know to get up to speed on this first criminal trial, starting April 15, 2024.
Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland will be presenting the 2024 federal budget on Tuesday, revealing how the federal Liberal government intends to balance the nearly $40 billion in pre-announced new spending with her vow to remain fiscally prudent.
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It’s common knowledge that exercise is good for your mental health and your heart health — and now a new study suggests that all three are working together.
The cybersecurity firm BrandShield has taken down more than 250 websites selling fake versions of popular weight-loss and diabetes drugs in the GLP-1 class, the company’s CEO Yoav Keren told Reuters.
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NASA confirmed Monday that a mystery object that crashed through the roof of a Florida home last month was a chunk of space junk from equipment discarded at the International Space Station.
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Canadian singer Grimes apologized to fans on Saturday after her Coachella set earlier that evening was beset by technical issues that caused her to scream into the microphone in frustration.
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The U.S. Department of Justice is preparing to file an antitrust lawsuit against Live Nation as soon as next month, the Wall Street Journal reported on Monday, citing people familiar with the matter.
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A high score on a Foo Fighters pinball machine has Edmonton player Dave Formenti on a high.
Celebrity food critic Keith Lee said he was blown away by Toronto, handing a rich ranking to its culinary creators, as the first international stop of his latest food tour.
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After four years at the University of Connecticut, Edwards was selected sixth overall by the Washington Mystics in the WNBA draft Monday night.
The Indiana Fever selected sharpshooter Caitlin Clark with the first pick of the WNBA Draft on Monday.
The NBA broke all-time regular-season records for total attendance, average attendance and sellouts for the second straight year in 2023-24.
Tesla will lay off more than 10 per cent of its global workforce, an internal memo seen by Reuters on Monday shows, as it grapples with falling sales amid an intensifying price war for electric vehicles.
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A police operation into stolen vehicles showed how Canada’s second-largest port in Montreal has become a key transport hub for stolen vehicle exports. Police say that's because of the port's strategic location and large container volume.
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A school teacher who took part in the Quebec version of the Survivor reality TV show took time off work to be a contestant is now out of a job.
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For many, Monday's total solar eclipse will become a distant memory or collection of photos to scroll through in the years to come. But for Alannah Duarte and her family, they'll be reminded of the rare celestial event every year they celebrate their youngest son's birthday, as he was born on the day of the momentous occasion.
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If you’ve ever felt the allure of Hollywood and wanted to be in a big-budget movie your time to shine is now.
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It's been more than two years since Jim Lynne died in a crash along Mosley Street in Wasaga Beach.
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The residents of Kashechewan First Nation are in a race against time, preparing for a mass evacuation as the relentless threat of flooding from the Albany River looms closer.
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A new ranking by food delivery platform Uber Eats puts Windsor among the top cities in the province for ordering cannabis.
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The HMCS Max Bernays made its way into its new home at CFB Esquimalt on Monday after a long journey from Halifax.
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Lethbridge West MLA Shannon Phillips is calling on the province to reinstate funding for the Lethbridge Elder Abuse Response Network.
If you’re planning to head to the coulees this weekend to enjoy the nice weather, don’t forget to look down.
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The City of Sault Ste. Marie is expecting a busy summer at the Downtown Plaza. City officials say the plaza is coming off a successful first winter season, which saw large crowds gathering at the outdoor rink.
The Soo Greyhounds are the talk of the town, as their second-round matchup in the OHL playoffs touches down in the Sault.
Thunder Bay Police Service held a news conference Monday afternoon to discuss the misconduct investigation that led to criminal charges being laid against the city's former police chief.
A pricing agreement has been reached between crab fishers and seafood processors that will allow for Newfoundland and Labrador's annual crab fishery to get started.
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A unique photo exhibit is putting cameras into the hands of survivors of domestic and sexual violence in Newfoundland and Labrador.
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