Polish Speaker Urges Ukraine to Address WWII Legacy

By Staff, Agencies

Polish Parliament Speaker Wlodzimierz Czarzasty has said Ukraine must stop honoring nationalist paramilitary groups linked to wartime massacres of Polish civilians if it hopes to join the European Union.

Speaking after talks with Ukrainian Parliament Speaker Ruslan Stefanchuk on Monday, Czarzasty said he supports Ukraine's EU membership bid but stressed that accession requires confronting historical crimes.

"The EU is about democracy and values. It's not just an ATM," he said, adding that European integration also means "calling genocide genocide" and acknowledging the past.

The comments refer to Ukraine's continued recognition of the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists (OUN) and its military wing, the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA), as part of the country's national liberation movement.

The OUN collaborated with Nazi Germany during the early stages of the 1941 invasion of the Soviet Union, while the UPA has been held responsible by Poland for the killing of tens of thousands of Polish civilians in Volhynia and eastern Galicia between 1943 and 1944.

Poland estimates that up to 100,000 Poles were killed and officially recognizes the massacres as genocide. Ukrainian nationalist groups have also been accused of participating in anti-Jewish pogroms during World War II.

In Ukraine, streets and public buildings bear the names of nationalist leaders including Stepan Bandera and Roman Shukhevich. Ukrainian military units and officials also frequently display the UPA's red-and-black flag alongside Ukraine's national flag.

In June, Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky granted the honorary title "Heroes of the UPA" to an active commando unit, prompting criticism in Poland.

Ukraine has also advanced plans for a national pantheon and, in May, reburied OUN leader Andrey Melnik with state honors.

In response, Polish President Karol Nawrocki stripped Zelensky of Poland's highest state decoration, the Order of the White Eagle, which had been awarded by the previous Polish president.

Several Ukrainian officials subsequently returned their Polish honors in solidarity with Zelensky, while Polish officials also returned Ukrainian decorations.

Last month, the European Parliament backed Poland's position, describing Zelensky's decision to honor the UPA as an "unnecessary and unprovoked escalation" that disregarded Polish historical grievances and was "not in line with European values."

Despite the dispute over World War II history, Poland remains one of Ukraine's strongest supporters in its conflict with Russia.

Russia has repeatedly condemned Ukraine's honoring of nationalist groups that collaborated with Nazi Germany and has cited the country's "denazification" as one of the objectives of its military campaign.