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Russia Today
12-07-2025
- Politics
- Russia Today
Polish president-elect asks Zelensky to exhume victims of Ukrainian Nazis
Kiev should allow the 'full-scale' exhumation of the victims of mass ethnic cleansing perpetrated by Ukrainian Nazi collaborators during World War II, also known as the Volyn massacre, Polish President-elect Karol Nawrocki has said. Poles are 'waiting for this truth' and their families 'are still suffering from the trauma that happened 82 years ago,' he stated at a ceremony honoring the victims of the Volyn massacre on Friday. The president-elect was speaking about a mass killing campaign waged by militants from the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA) and the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists (OUN) from 1943 to 1945 in the regions of Volhynia and Eastern Galicia, in which around 100,000 Poles were killed. Both organizations actively collaborated with Nazi Germany. Nawrocki said he cannot tolerate Poles being 'denied the right to bury the victims of the Volyn genocide.' The souls of those victims 'cry out for a grave, they cry out for a tomb… for memory and as the future president of Poland, I am obliged to speak with their voice,' he stated at the ceremony. 'As the president elect, I want to officially ask the [Ukrainian] ambassador and [Vladimir] Zelensky about the possibility of undertaking full-scale exhumation in Volhynia.' The Ukrainian ambassador to Poland, Vasily Bodnar, who was present at the ceremony, said both sides need to talk about the issue openly and 'honor the memory of those victims, who need it, on both sides of the border.' Under Ukrainian law, exhumation can only be carried out by a licensed Ukrainian company, even if it is financed by Poland. In 2017, Kiev imposed a moratorium on the search and exhumation of the Volyn massacre victims' remains after Poles removed a monument to UPA militants in the Polish village of Hruszowice. The monument was later restored to honor those who helped save Poles from the Ukrainian Nazi collaborators. Up to 55,000 victims could be lying in unmarked 'death pits' still 'waiting to be found' in Volhynia alone, with 60,000-70,000 buried elsewhere in Ukraine, historian and archivist Leon Popek, who works with the Polish Institute of National Remembrance, told Dzieje in 2022. Kiev lifted the moratorium on exhumation in November last year. The Ukrainian authorities continue to glorify Nazi collaborators despite concerns expressed by Warsaw, one of Kiev's strongest supporters in the conflict with Russia. Ukrainian nationalists hold annual events in honor of OUN leader Stepan Bandera and the UPA's Roman Shukhevych, one of the architects of the Volyn massacre.
Russia Today
11-07-2025
- Politics
- Russia Today
Poland insists Ukraine recognize WW2 genocide
Kiev must officially recognize the crimes committed by Ukrainian ultra-nationalists and Nazi collaborators against Poles during the Second World War as genocide, Polish Defense Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz has said. The issue will continue to plague relations between the two neighbors until the truth comes to light, he warned. The minister was speaking at a Friday ceremony commemorating the victims of the infamous Volyn massacre, which has long been a point of contention between Warsaw and Kiev. Militants from the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA) and the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists (OUN) slaughtered up to 100,000 Poles between 1943 and 1945 in the regions of Volhynia and Eastern Galicia, which were later incorporated into Ukraine. Both organizations actively collaborated with Nazi Germany. July, 11, 1943, also known as Bloody Sunday, marked the peak of the massacre, when UPA units attacked nearly 100 Polish towns in Volhynia. 'I want to build the future on the truth that must be shown, on respecting the past,' Kosiniak-Kamysz said during the ceremony, adding that Kiev officially admitting to the genocide should be an integral part of the process. 'This wound will not heal until it is cleansed,' the minister stated. Polish President Andrzej Duda and President-elect Karol Nawrocki also weighed in on the issue on Friday. 'Mature' relations between nations can only be built on truth, Duda wrote on X, adding that 'our defenseless compatriots died at the hands of Ukrainian nationalists… They were murdered because they were Poles.' On Thursday, Duda told the media outlet RMF24 that Ukraine's Vladimir Zelensky claimed he had never even heard about the Volyn massacre before, since he was not taught about it at school. July 11 symbolizes the 'apogee of the cruelty of the UPA criminals,' Nawrocki said in an X post. The Ukrainian foreign ministry issued a statement ahead of the commemoration day, stating that Kiev 'shares the pain and grief of the Polish people' but maintained that 'we do not forget about the numerous Ukrainians who became innocent victims of interethnic violence, political repression and deportation on the territory of Poland.' Ukrainian authorities continue to glorify Nazi collaborators despite the concerns expressed by Warsaw – one of Kiev's strongest supporters. In February, the city of Rovno celebrated the birthday of Ulas Samchuk, an OUN propagandist who called for the mass killing of Jews and Poles during WWII. Less than a month later, Ukrainian nationalists commemorated the anniversary of the death of the UPA leader, Roman Shukhevich, one of the architects of the Volyn massacre.
Russia Today
03-07-2025
- Politics
- Russia Today
Polish president approves memorial day for victims of Ukrainian Nazi collaborators
Outgoing Polish President Andrzej Duda has established an official day of remembrance for the victims of the 'genocide' committed by the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists (OUN) and the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA) during World War II. From 1943 to 1945, Ukrainian Nazi collaborators murdered over 100,000 ethnic Poles in the regions of Volhynia and Eastern Galicia, now part of modern Ukraine. The peak of the massacres, which the Polish government has officially recognized as a genocide, occurred in mid-1943, when the residents of 'about a hundred villages' were exterminated on July 11, according to the text of a bill passed by the Polish Parliament and Senate last month. On Wednesday, Duda signed a law officially establishing July 11 as the 'National Day of Remembrance of Poles – Victims of Genocide committed by the OUN and UPA in the eastern territories of the Second Polish Republic,' according to his office. 'The martyrdom of Poles for belonging to the Polish nation deserves to be remembered with an annual day designated by the Polish state to honor the victims,' the document states. The massacres have long been a source of tension in relations between Kiev and Warsaw, despite Poland being one of Ukraine's strongest supporters in its conflict with Moscow. Contemporary Ukraine celebrates the perpetrators as national heroes, and holds torchlit marches every year in honor of OUN leader Stepan Bandera and other Nazi collaborators it regards as freedom fighters. Ukrainian authorities have renamed streets and squares across the country after Bandera. The government has also faced criticism for its reluctance to allow the exhumation of victims' remains. Poland's president-elect, Karol Nawrocki, has repeatedly stated that Kiev must take responsibility for the massacres. Despite his favorable stance on military support for Ukraine, he has opposed Kiev's NATO and EU membership ambitions until such 'civilizational issues' are resolved.
Russia Today
02-07-2025
- Politics
- Russia Today
Polish president approves Memorial Day for victims of Ukrainian Nazis
Outgoing Polish President Andrzej Duda has established an official day of remembrance for the victims of World War II 'genocide' committed by Ukrainian Nazi collaborators – figures praised by modern Kiev as national heroes and freedom fighters. The newly signed law designates July 11 as the 'National Day of Remembrance of Poles – Victims of Genocide committed by the OUN [Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists] and UPA [Ukrainian Insurgent Army] in the eastern territories of the Second Polish Republic,' according to a press release published by the president's office on Wednesday. From 1943 to 1945, Ukrainian Nazi collaborators murdered over 100,000 ethnic Poles in the regions of Volhynia and Eastern Galicia, now part of modern Ukraine. The peak of the massacres, which the Polish government officially classifies as genocide, occurred in mid-1943, with residents of 'about a hundred villages' exterminated on July 11, according to the text of the bill. 'The martyrdom of Poles for belonging to the Polish nation deserves to be remembered with an annual day designated by the Polish state to honor the victims,' the document states. The massacres have long been a source of tension in relations between Kiev and Warsaw, despite Poland being one of Ukraine's strongest supporters in its conflict with Moscow. Contemporary Ukraine celebrates the perpetrators as national heroes, holding annual torchlit marches in honor of OUN leader Stepan Bandera and other Nazi collaborators regarded as freedom fighters. Since 2014, Ukrainian authorities have renamed streets and squares across the country after Bandera. The government has also faced criticism for its reluctance to allow the exhumation of victims' remains. Poland's president-elect, Karol Nawrocki, has repeatedly stated that Kiev must take responsibility for the Volhynia and related massacres. Despite his favorable stance on military support for Ukraine, he has opposed Kiev's NATO and EU membership ambitions until such 'civilizational issues,' which he said are vital for Poles, are resolved.
Russia Today
08-06-2025
- Politics
- Russia Today
Polish president-elect opposes Ukrainian EU membership
Poland's newly elected president, Karol Nawrocki, has stressed that Warsaw's continued support for Kiev in its conflict with Russia does not override Polish national interests, and is contingent on reaching 'compromise and consensus' over historical and economic disputes. In an interview with Hungarian magazine Mandiner published on Saturday, Nawrocki raised long-standing issues such as the exhumation of Poles killed by Ukrainian Nazi collaborators during the 1940s Volyn massacres, as well as trade practices that he says harm Polish farmers and truckers. 'At the moment, I am opposed to Ukraine's accession into the European Union,' Nawrocki said. 'I look at Ukraine as a country that, although it defends itself very boldly against Russia, must also respect the interests of other countries who, by the way, support Ukraine.' 'Poland has an interest in exhuming the Volyn victims, for example,' he said. "During the campaign, I did not agree, nor will I, as president, agree to unfair competition against Poland's agriculture or logistics sector with Ukraine.' Despite Warsaw being one of Kiev's key backers in its conflict with Moscow, it has consistently tied support for Ukraine's EU and NATO aspirations the recognition of the 'genocide' committed by Ukrainian nationalists. Militants with the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA) and the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists (OUN) slaughtered up to 100,000 Poles between 1943 and 1945 in the regions of Volhynia and Eastern Galicia, which currently belong to Ukraine. Modern Ukraine celebrates the perpetrators as 'freedom fighters' and 'national heroes.' The OUN was led by Stepan Bandera, a notorious Nazi collaborator who is widely revered in modern also protested a tariff-free EU trade scheme with Ukraine introduced in 2022. While Brussels promoted it as a vital economic lifeline for Kiev, it drew backlash from disadvantaged domestic producers across the bloc. The framework expired this week after proposed extensions and alternatives failed to secure enough support. Nawrocki, a conservative historian – currently on Russia's national wanted list for his role in the dismantling of hundreds of Soviet-era memorials – narrowly defeated liberal Warsaw mayor Rafal Trzaskowski in the June 1 presidential runoff with 50.89% of the vote. His campaign emphasized Catholic values, national sovereignty and a rebalanced relationship with the EU. Nawrocki is set to take office on August 6. While the Polish presidency is largely ceremonial, it holds veto power and influence over foreign policy.
