In Lublin, the Ukrainian flag was taken down from the town hall following the decision to name a Special Operations Forces unit ‘after the Heroes of the UPA’
This is reported by the Polish publication WP Wiadomości.
The city council’s press office stated that the decision to name one of the Ukrainian military units ‘after the Heroes of the UPA’ ‘offends Polish memory’ and ‘complicates the establishment of sincere dialogue’.
“Following the example of other Polish cities, we have decided to remove the Ukrainian flag from Lublin Town Hall. We share the critical stance of the Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Polish Embassy in Kyiv regarding President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s decision,” the city council’s statement reads.
Despite this, Lublin City Council stated that the city continues to support Kyiv in its struggle for independence and territorial integrity.
“We see no contradiction between defending historical truth and showing solidarity with a people who have fallen victim to unjustified aggression,” the City Council stated.
The Ukrainian flag has been flying on Lublin City Hall since 2022, alongside the flags of Poland and the European Union.
It should be recalled that on 26 May, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy issued a decree in which he decided to award the Special Operations Centre “North” of the Special Operations Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine the honorary title “of the Heroes of the UPA”. The document states that the aim of this decision is “to restore the historical traditions of the national army”.
The former President of Poland and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Lech Wałęsa reacted to this by removing a badge bearing the Ukrainian flag and accusing Zelenskyy of “honouring the UPA bandits”, thereby “offending him and all his slain compatriots”.
The Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that for Ukrainian military personnel, “the UPA’s struggle symbolises resistance to Moscow’s imperial policies — and is in no way directed against Poles”.
What is known about Zelenskyy’s decree
On 26 May, Zelensky issued a decree granting the ‘North’ Special Operations Centre of the Special Operations Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine the honorary title ‘of the Heroes of the UPA’. The document states that the aim of this decision is to ‘restore the historical traditions of the national army’.
This decree by the Ukrainian president has drawn significant criticism from some Polish politicians, who have condemned it, recalling that the UPA committed crimes against Poles in Volhynia.
In particular, former Polish President Lech Wałęsa, who had supported Ukraine and Zelenskyy himself, also condemned the Ukrainian president and stated that he would remove the lapel pin in the colours of the Ukrainian flag, which he had been wearing since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion.
The Polish Institute of National Remembrance also reacted, stating in its declaration that the UPA was responsible for the “genocide in Volhynia and Eastern Galicia” and emphasising that “the Ukrainian authorities’ creation of a cult of the Ukrainian Insurgent Army should provoke opposition from all those who remember the activities of this formation”.
Polish President Karol Nawrocki also criticised Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy for naming a Special Operations Forces unit ‘after the Heroes of the UPA’. As a result, he proposed stripping Zelenskyy of the Order of the White Eagle — Poland’s highest honour, which was awarded to him by former Polish President Andrzej Duda.
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