Poland is demanding an apology from Zelenskyy over the name of the Special Operations Forces
This was stated by Marcin Przydacz, Head of the Polish President’s Office for International Policy, during an appearance on the Graffiti programme, according to RMF24. Earlier, Polish President Karol Nawrocki also announced his intention to initiate the stripping of Zelenskyy of the Order of the White Eagle due to this decision.
Marcin Przydacz stated that the Ukrainian president should call his Polish counterpart and, in his words, “firstly, apologise for this matter, and secondly, explain the whole situation”.
He also questioned whether the Ukrainian side had not realised what reaction such a decision might provoke in Poland.
This refers to Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s decree awarding the honorary title “in the name of the Heroes of the UPA” to the “North” Special Operations Centre of the Special Operations Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
Poland saw the decision as a political signal
Pszydach stated that Zelenskyy’s decision could have been part of an internal Ukrainian political narrative ahead of potential elections in Ukraine.
According to him, elections in Ukraine “may take place soon”, and the right wing of Ukrainian politics also matters.
The Polish official also suggested that the Ukrainian side might have been counting on a division within the Polish political scene. In his view, this “unfortunately, seems to be succeeding”.
Navrotsky wants to strip Zelenskyy of his order
Pszidach described the Ukrainian president’s decision as “outrageous” and stated that it required a firm response from Warsaw.
According to him, this is precisely why Karol Nawrocki decided that Zelenskyy was “unworthy” of receiving the Order of the White Eagle following the decision to name the Ukrainian unit.
Earlier, Nawrocki stated that, due to the SSO unit being named “after the Heroes of the UPA”, he intends to raise the issue of stripping Zelenskyy of the Order of the White Eagle at the Order’s chapter meeting on 8 June.
Poland summoned the Ukrainian ambassador
Following Zelenskyy’s decree, a meeting took place in Poland between Deputy Foreign Minister Marcin Bosacki and Ukrainian Ambassador Vasyl Bodnar.
The Ukrainian ambassador was told that Poland protested and that this move was deeply hurtful to Poles.
As reported by ThePublic, Lech Wałęsa removed the Ukrainian flag following Zelenskyy’s decision regarding the UPA
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