Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's office says he won't be attending any memorial or funeral services for the late Cuban leader Fidel Castro.
Instead, Trudeau has dispatched Governor General David Johnston to attend a memorial service scheduled to take place Tuesday in Havana.
The service is to take place in Plaza de la Revolucion in Havana, steps away from a memorial where Trudeau laid a wreath during his recent visit to the island nation.
The Prime Minister's Office would not say if any other government representatives would attend memorial services or Castro's funeral, which will take place on Sunday.
Trudeau's decision follows harsh criticism at home and abroad for a laudatory statement issued on the weekend that praised the dictator's legacy.
Trudeau's statement expressed "deep sorrow'' about the death of Castro, 90, and called him a "legendary revolutionary" and a "remarkable leader". He didn't make any mention, however, of the human rights violations of his regime beyond referring vaguely to him as a "a controversial figure.''
The statement also inspired the mocking Twitter hashtag #TrudeauEulogies.
It drew sharp criticism from some Conservative Party leadership hopefuls, and some American politicians, including Marco Rubio, the son of Cuban exiles and now a Florida senator, who wondered out loud on Twitter if Trudeau's statement was some sort of parody.
The former Republican presidential hopeful added if it wasn't a parody, the statement was "shameful and embarrassing".
-CJAD 800's Richard Deschamps contributed to this report.