Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky announced he has returned Poland's highest honor, the Order of the White Eagle, after Polish President Karol Nawrocki moved to strip him of the award. The decision follows a diplomatic dispute triggered by Ukraine renaming an army unit after the controversial Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA), which Poland accuses of committing genocide against ethnic Poles during World War II.
Background of the Award and Dispute
The Order of the White Eagle was bestowed upon Zelensky in 2023 by then-Polish President Andrzej Duda. However, tensions flared last month when Kyiv renamed a Ukrainian military unit after the UPA, a group that fought in the 1940s and 1950s for Ukrainian independence against the Soviet Red Army, Nazi Germany, and Polish authorities. While many Ukrainians view the UPA as heroes and their red-and-black flag is often seen on the front lines, Poland accuses the group of massacring approximately 100,000 ethnic Poles in Volhynia (now Volyn, Ukraine) between 1943 and 1945.
Polish and Ukrainian Reactions
Polish President Nawrocki condemned the unit renaming as “outrageous,” “incomprehensible,” and “deeply disappointing.” In a video statement, he said, “For the overwhelming majority of Polish society, the UPA remains, above all, a formation responsible for the brutal crimes committed against citizens of the Republic of Poland during World War Two. It hurts not only our historical memory. It also undermines the trust built up over the years and in recent months.” Despite the row, Nawrocki stressed that Poland's support for Ukraine against Russia would not be affected.
Three senior Ukrainian officials have also announced they are returning awards bestowed by Poland in solidarity with Zelensky. In a social media statement, Zelensky said Ukraine would “remain open to all meaningful formats of engagement with Poland in order to try to avoid conflicting interpretations of the difficult and painful chapters of our shared past.” He added that Ukraine was “grateful to the Polish People for their support and co-operation.”
Impact on Bilateral Relations
Poland has been one of Ukraine's strongest allies during the war with Russia, hosting hundreds of thousands of refugees and serving as a key logistics hub for aid. Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk urged calm, stating on social media that any feud between the two countries “delights” Russian President Vladimir Putin and called on Zelensky and Nawrocki to “calm emotions, not to stoke tensions.” Ukraine, which has ambitions to join the European Union, attended the first phase of membership negotiations this week in Luxembourg.
