Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy took steps to repair relations with Poland, a key wartime ally, pledging to expand investigations into World War II-era massacres and open intelligence archives after a dispute over the naming of a Ukrainian military unit.
Zelenskyy chaired a meeting focused on bilateral relations and promised to widen probes into killings committed by the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA), as well as to release relevant archives from the Security Service of Ukraine and the Foreign Intelligence Service of Ukraine, according to a statement from his office.
Diplomatic overtures and historical reconciliation
“Priorities are clear: we all in Europe need good neighborly, equal and mutually beneficial relations based on respect,” Zelenskyy wrote on X, formerly Twitter, in a post reported by Reuters. “Poland has provided significant support to Ukraine since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion, and we are grateful to Poland.”
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk welcomed Zelenskyy’s remarks, writing on X: “We are ready for serious and friendly dialogue on issues that unite us today and on those that divide us.”
Historians estimate that between 1943 and 1945, the UPA and allied nationalist forces killed between 70,000 and 100,000 ethnic Poles in the Volyn region. Thousands of Ukrainians also died in retaliatory massacres.
Zelenskyy said additional efforts would be made to exhume victims’ bodies and to allocate resources to the Institute of Ukrainian History.
However, Ukrainian officials gave no indication that they would reverse the decision to name an army unit after the UPA, stating that Ukraine alone must decide which heroes it chooses to honor.
The dispute had escalated recently when Polish President Karol Nawrocki stripped Zelenskyy of Poland’s highest state award.
The issue remains a sensitive point in bilateral relations, with both sides emphasizing the need for dialogue.
