Poland’s President Karol Nawrocki Revokes Zelensky’s Order of the White Eagle Over UPA Naming

Poland’s president Karol Nawrocki revoked Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelensky’s Order of the White Eagle after Zelensky consented to name a unit of the Armed Forces of Ukraine “Heroes of the UPA,” escalating a World War II dispute between allies just days before Poland is due to host the annual Ukraine Recovery Conference in Gdansk.

Nawrocki said in a statement that “Historical truth is not, and can never be, a bargaining chip,” and he framed the decision as a response to Ukraine’s naming of the unit after the Ukrainian Insurgent Army, which Poland links to massacres against Poles.

BBC

The BBC reported that Nawrocki branded the decision “outrageous”, “incomprehensible” and “deeply disappointing,” while also stressing the diplomatic row would not impact Poland’s support for Ukraine against Russia.

The BBC also said Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha denounced Warsaw’s move as a “strategic mistake” and “disrespectful,” as the dispute centers on how the UPA is remembered in Poland and Ukraine.

The Straits Times reported that Nawrocki’s decision was likely to unleash a severe diplomatic crisis between the neighbours just days ahead of the conference in Gdansk, with Zelensky’s attendance unclear for days amid the row.

Sybiha told the BBC that the revocation was “a strategic mistake by the president of Poland that only benefits Moscow,” and he added that “No president of another country is going to dictate our history to us.”

The Straits Times quoted Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk calling for both presidents to cool emotions, writing on X that “The conflict between Poland and Ukraine delights Putin and shocks our allies.”

BBC

In a statement, Nawrocki said his decision “is not directed against the Ukrainian people,” and he insisted it “does not signify a change in the strategic direction of Polish security policy.”

The BBC reported that many Ukrainians regard the UPA as heroes who fought for Ukrainian independence against the Soviet Red Army as well as Nazi Germany, while Poland accuses the UPA of carrying out a genocide of ethnic Poles in Volhynia in 1943-45.

The BBC also said Zelensky told the row he would use the UPA’s name for a military unit “with the aim of restoring the historical traditions of the national army,” but Zelensky himself had not directly commented on the row.

The dispute is unfolding as Poland prepares for the Ukraine Recovery Conference in Gdansk, with the Straits Times saying Nawrocki’s decision landed days before the conference and that it was not clear if Zelensky would attend.

“Useful links Sections Services Sectors Newsletters en Poland withdraws the Order of the White Eagle from Zelensky for honoring the UPA, reopening a historical wound and straining relations with Kyiv”

Demócrata

France 24 reported that the Ukraine Recovery Conference is a two-day event due to kick off in Gdansk next Thursday, and it said Zelensky’s attendance was unclear for days amid the row.

France 24 also said Poland’s foreign ministry spokesman Maciej Wiewor told AFP that “what unites us is the future and ensuring both Ukraine and Poland are safe. I think that is the priority today.”

The BBC added that Ukraine attended the first phase of membership negotiations this week in Luxembourg, and it noted that Poland’s Prime Minister Donald Tusk attempted to dampen growing diplomatic tensions between Kyiv and Warsaw.

In the BBC’s account of the stakes, Nawrocki argued that Ukraine’s path toward European structures requires confronting difficult chapters of its own history, saying “For those who do not understand this, there can be no place in the European Union, and Poland will certainly not allow it.”