Poland Revokes High Award from Zelensky... Ukraine Denounces 'Humiliating' Move

SadaNews - On Friday evening, Poland announced the revocation of its highest national honor from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, a move that Kyiv condemned as a "strategic mistake" and "humiliating."

The withdrawal of the "Order of the White Eagle" was decided by Polish President Karol Nawrocki, escalating the dispute between the two neighboring allies, following Zelensky's naming of a Ukrainian army unit after a nationalist rebel army that participated in World War II and committed massacres against Poles.

Nawrocki's decision, which is opposed by his Prime Minister Donald Tusk, came days before Poland is set to host the annual Ukraine Recovery Conference in Gdańsk, overlooking the Baltic Sea. It is still unclear whether Zelensky will attend the conference.

The Polish president stated in the announcement of his decision that "historical truth is not, and will never be, a bargaining chip."

He emphasized that Poland has repeatedly urged Ukraine to retract the naming of the unit as the "Heroes of the Ukrainian Rebel Army," but that "the Ukrainian side's position has not changed."

In response to the move, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha stated that "only Moscow benefits" from the "reckless" decision, adding that he would return the award he received from Warsaw in 2022.

The "Heroes of the Ukrainian Rebel Army" were the military wing of the Ukrainian independence movement that fought against the Red Army but also clashed with Polish resistance and killed civilians, while sometimes cooperating with the Nazis and turning against them at other times.

Poland, a member of the European Union and NATO, has been one of Ukraine's main allies since the beginning of the Russian invasion over four years ago, hosting hundreds of thousands of refugees and forming a logistical hub for Western aid to Kyiv, particularly military assistance.

Historical disputes between the two neighbors have become less frequent since Tusk, the former European Council president, returned to power to replace the nationalist government in Warsaw, but they still remain a source of divergence, according to the "French Press Agency."