Karol Nawrocki Strips Volodymyr Zelensky of Poland’s Order of the White Eagle

Poland’s President Karol Nawrocki stripped Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky of Poland’s highest honour, the Order of the White Eagle, after Zelensky named a military unit after the Ukrainian Insurgent Army, or UPA, which Poland links to massacres of Poles during World War II.

“Ukraine’s president and his top officials are returning Polish awards, in a spiralling dispute with key ally Poland over World War II massacres”

Al Jazeera

Nawrocki said he was acting in light of Zelensky’s consent to name one of the units of the Armed Forces of Ukraine “Heroes of the UPA,” and he framed the move as a moral obligation of the Polish state.

Al Jazeera

The BBC reported that the Order of the White Eagle had been bestowed on Zelensky in 2023 by then-President Andrzej Duda, and CNN said Nawrocki decided to strip the award over Zelensky’s May 26 decree naming a unit of Ukraine’s Special Operations Forces after the UPA.

The dispute unfolded as Poland, a key ally during Russia’s full-scale invasion, prepared to host a major Ukraine postwar reconstruction event in Gdansk, with Zelensky’s attendance described as unclear for days amid the row.

Zelensky responded by returning the Order of the White Eagle, writing that “Today, I sent the Order back to the President of Poland,” and he said he believed “the future will confirm the respect Ukrainians deserve.”

Ukrainian Presidential Office chief Kyrylo Budanov said Nawrocki’s decision was “an unfriendly act toward our people” and “a gift to the Moscow aggressor, which will certainly use it against both of our countries,” as multiple Ukrainian officials said they would relinquish Polish honours.

BBC

Andrii Sybiha, Ukraine’s foreign minister, called the Polish move a “strategic mistake,” while the BBC reported that three senior Ukrainian officials said they were returning awards bestowed by Poland to show solidarity with Zelensky.

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk urged both sides to “tone down emotions, not stoke tensions,” warning that the row “delights Putin and shocks our allies,” as the conflict over World War II memory threatened to spill into the alliance’s political calendar.

The row’s immediate consequence was a widening diplomatic break in which Ukraine said it would stay open to “meaningful formats of interaction with Poland” to avoid “conflicting interpretations of the difficult and painful chapters of our shared past,” while Poland insisted the decision would not change its strategic direction or support for Ukraine’s defense against Russia.

BBC reported that Nawrocki branded Ukraine’s decision to name the unit after the UPA “outrageous,” “incomprehensible” and “deeply disappointing,” and he said the UPA “remains, above all, a formation responsible for the brutal crimes committed against citizens of the Republic of Poland during World War Two.”

The dispute also intersected with Poland’s planned hosting of the Ukraine Recovery Conference in Gdansk, described as a two-day event due to kick off next Thursday, and Reuters said Poland expected several thousand officials and business leaders in the Baltic port for the conference.

As Ukraine sought to rally international support to pressure Russia to end its war, DW said the honor dispute could further strain ties between “two close strategic partners,” while the BBC noted Poland’s support for Ukraine against Russia would continue despite the historical quarrel.