Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski has called a decision by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to name one of the country’s military units after the Heroes of the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA) "a mistake."
"Please refer to the statement by the prime minister that it is Ukraine that made a mistake, and we expect Ukraine itself to correct that mistake," Sikorski said, as quoted by TVP.
At the same time, he described as "scandalous" a statement by Przemyslaw Czarnek, vice president of the Law and Justice (PiS) party and its candidate for prime minister, calling for a count of Ukrainians in the Polish state administration.
"Poland is a homeland for all its citizens, regardless of religion or origin, and I believe that such nationalist attacks are an attempt to resurrect the ghosts of the darkest pages of Polish history. I hope that our compatriots will not be deceived," Sikorski said.
As previously reported, in late May President Zelenskyy granted the Special Operations Forces’ Separate Special Operations Centre North the honorary name "Heroes of the UPA." The decision drew criticism in Poland, where the Ukrainian Insurgent Army is associated with the Volhynia tragedy.
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk appealed to both the Polish and Ukrainian presidents to de-escalate tensions, stressing that the primary responsibility for resolving the crisis lies with the Ukrainian side.
"I appealed to both presidents to find a better way to de-escalate these emotions than exchanging blows. Frankly, I appealed more to the Ukrainian side to take the necessary initiatives and demonstrate both goodwill and resourcefulness, since it was the Ukrainian president’s decision that led to this crisis. I have no doubts about that. And the role of presidents in such a situation is to find a good solution – not a perfect one, because there won’t be one," Tusk said.
