Iran’s foreign minister is acknowledging that Iranians were lied to for days, following the shooting down of a Ukrainian jetliner on January 8th.

The comments made Wednesday by Mohammad Javad Zarif represent the first time an Iranian official referred to the initial story of a technical malfunction as a lie.

The shooting down of the plane that killed all 176 people on board, including 57 Canadians, has sparked days of angry protests in Tehran.

(Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif speaks at the Raisina Dialogue 2020 in New Delhi, Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2020. Zarif is in the country on a three-day visit. Manish Swarup/AP)

Meantime, Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky says he’s had a conversation with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to discuss how to make those responsible pay for the downing of the Ukrainian airliner near Tehran.

Trudeau’s handling of the disaster over the past week was among the topics discussed Tuesday with our strategy panel on Zoomer Radio’s Fight Back with Libby Znaimer.

“I think that it’s always in our national interest to portray calm in the face of all the other upset that’s occurring,” said former Toronto City Councillor Karen Stintz, “But I do think that Justin Trudeau has legitimate reason to be really frustrated with the United States of America because we continue to get involved in their foreign policy and it continues to be bad for Canadians.”

Stintz points to the arrest and detention of two Canadians in China after the U.S. asked Canada to arrest Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou in Vancouver.

Listen to Libby Znaimer’s conversation with Tuesday Strategy Panelists Karen Stintz, John Capobianco and Charles Bird by clicking here.