After Russia attacked Ukraine in February 2022, the solidarity between Poland and Ukraine became one of the most heartwarming stories of the Kremlin’s brutal war. Millions of Poles, remembering their own country’s tragic history with Russia, rushed to help Ukrainian refugees with food, shelter, and support as they crossed the border in huge numbers to escape the conflict.
Four years later, that wave of generosity and solidarity feels like a distant memory. The two countries are now locked in a bitter dispute over history, marked by angry rhetoric, mutual accusations, and a threat from Poland to block Ukraine’s EU membership until it sorts out its historical issues.
The dispute centers on the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA), one branch of which was responsible for the massacre of about 100,000 Poles in 1943 in Volyn, western Ukraine—then part of Poland, known as Volhynia. This has long been a sticking point between Warsaw and Kyiv, but the latest conflict flared up when Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy decided to name a military unit after “heroes of the UPA,” despite Polish protests.
In Ukraine, the UPA is mainly remembered for fighting against Soviet rule, while its role in massacres of Poles, as well as killings of Jews, is downplayed or seen as just one part of a larger pattern of crimes by various forces during the chaos of World War II. Some Ukrainians also point to the historical context of discriminatory policies by Polish authorities against their ancestors. However, there is little doubt that the killings happened, and in Poland, they are called genocide.
“Praising genocide or turning a blind eye is an invitation to commit further genocide,” said Poland’s nationalist president, Karol Nawrocki, in a speech marking the anniversary of the massacres on Saturday, near the border with Ukraine.
In June, Nawrocki stripped Zelenskyy of a Polish state award because of the dispute. This led several Ukrainian officials to return their own Polish decorations, and sparked an angry response from Ukraine’s political elite.
“No one will ever again dictate to Ukrainians which heroes to honor, which holidays to celebrate, or which history to study,” wrote Kyrylo Budanov, Zelenskyy’s chief of staff, on X, as the government announced it was moving forward with a “pantheon” of Ukrainian national heroes, likely to include UPA figures.
Zelenskyy is an unlikely nationalist figurehead. He won office in 2019 as an “inclusive” leader who could unite Ukrainians, and he grew up in a Russian-speaking Jewish family from Ukraine’s southeastern industrial belt, far from the nationalist traditions of western Ukraine. “Suddenly, a guy who knows perfectly well how damaging honoring the UPA is has started playing with this nationalism,” said Bartosz Cichocki, Poland’s ambassador to Ukraine from 2019 to 2023.
Some suggest Zelenskyy has decided there will be clear domestic benefits from this move, at a time when society is united in the fight against Russia and eager for national heroes. “He’s gaining domestic legitimacy but losing something much bigger… I think they’ve been surprised by how strong our reaction has been,” Cichocki added.
In Poland, Nawrocki has eagerly seized on the scandal. As a historian, he has focused on Polish suffering and heroism in past roles, and last year he beat a liberal candidate to the presidency with anti-Ukrainian sentiment as part of his platform. Stripping Zelenskyy of the highest civilian honor awarded by the Polish state was a surprising move, especially since the same award was given to—and never revoked from—the Italian dictator Benito Mussolini and the openly pro-Russian former German chancellor Gerhard Schröder.In April 2023, Polish President Andrzej Duda awarded Zelenskyy the Order of the White Eagle. Photograph: Radek Pietruszka/EPA
Yet it’s clear that taking a tough stance on Ukraine can pay off politically. A recent poll by Polish news outlet Onet suggested the scandal has boosted Nawrocki’s popularity, pushing his trust ratings to an all-time high of 55%—up more than 8% from just a month earlier.
Ukrainian historian Yaroslav Hrytsak said: “Poland has a memory warrior in power, who uses memory as a tool for partisan battles in Poland.” Referring to Nawrocki and Zelenskyy, he added: “On one side, we have a president who cares too much about history, and on the other, a president who cares too little about it.”
Standing in sharp political opposition to Nawrocki is Poland’s coalition government, led by Donald Tusk. Some of its members have tried to take a more conciliatory approach toward Ukraine, but they too have been angered by the UPA announcement. With parliamentary elections coming next year, they are very aware of the risks of appearing weak on Ukraine.
Last weekend, Tusk announced the creation of a “wall of memory” that will list the names of every known victim of the massacre. He suggested Ukraine has no place in the EU until it confronts its own history. “Reconciliation in Europe after World War II was possible because of truth and the ability to speak honestly about the past,” Tusk said. “Those who want to join this community must be ready for that truth.”
View image in fullscreen: Donald Tusk and Volodymyr Zelenskyy visit a war memorial in Kyiv in February. Photograph: Ukrainian Presidential Press Service/Reuters
Such an open breakdown in Polish-Ukrainian relations may be new, but discontent had been building on both sides for some time. Unity had held because Ukraine knew it couldn’t afford to lose a key ally, and Poland understood that Ukraine’s military stood between it and an expansionist Russia. But events like the blockade of Ukrainian trucks by Polish drivers in late 2023 hinted at a more complicated relationship beneath the surface.
Many Poles feel resentment toward the more than 1 million Ukrainians now living in Poland, fueled by nationalist politicians who ignore the fact that Ukrainians are net contributors to the Polish economy.
For Ukrainians, there’s a sense that Poles look down on them and don’t appreciate the sacrifices they’re making to protect the rest of Europe from Russia. Many express anger at the humiliating treatment they face at Polish border crossings—one of the few ways to leave Ukraine, given the lack of flights into the country since 2022. Even after four years of war, there are often minimal facilities, aggressive border guards, and long queues in the open air, where elderly people and young children are forced to wait for hours in heat, rain, or snow.
Skip past newsletter promotion: Free newsletter | Weekly. Sign up to This is Europe. The most pressing stories and debates for Europeans—from identity to economics to the environment. Preview. Enter your email. Sign up.
After newsletter promotion: “Every time I enter Poland, I feel my whole body shaking with rage at the way they look at us, the way they treat us,” said Olha, a graphic designer from Kyiv who didn’t want her surname published.
More broadly, Jewish groups have also raised concerns over the years about Ukraine’s veneration of certain UPA figures whose followers were complicit in the Holocaust. In 2010, US historian Timothy Snyder criticized former Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko for honoring Stepan Bandera, leader of one wing of the UPA. Snyder described Bandera’s political goal as “a one-party fascist dictatorship without national minorities.” Yet streets in cities across Ukraine have been named after Bandera, and his quotes can be found on the walls of trendy Kyiv cafes.
This is not evidence, as Kremlin propaganda has long suggested, that Ukrainian society is consumed by…Fueled by fascism. The widespread acceptance of the UPA is part of a larger process of national consolidation in Ukraine, where many people have embraced various Ukrainian historical figures as the country unites against the Russian threat.
Hrytsak said: “Ukraine used to be deeply divided over the UPA, with about half of Ukrainians viewing them as bandits or collaborators. Since the war began, there’s been an immediate consensus that they are freedom fighters.”
Pointing to “ignorance and lack of sensitivity” in Ukraine regarding the UPA’s more controversial legacy, he added that many Ukrainians now see the nationalist movement only through its fight against Soviet power, and were surprised and offended by the strong Polish reaction.
View image in fullscreen
Protesters in Warsaw commemorating the Volhynia massacre wear T-shirts showing their opposition to Stepan Bandera. Photograph: Marek Antoni Iwańczuk/NurPhoto/Shutterstock
Karolina Romanowska, head of the Polish-Ukrainian Reconciliation Association, whose grandfather survived the Volhynia massacre, made a film about it in 2023 and has traveled to Ukraine many times, sometimes organizing workshops in the places where it happened. “People were often completely shocked by what they heard,” she said. “It was the first time they had ever learned about things that happened where they lived.” She said recent Ukrainian rhetoric left her “sad and disappointed.”
Efforts to bring historians from both countries together to reach a common understanding now seem doomed, as politicians lead the discussions and conciliatory voices go unheard. Over the weekend, at a ceremony in Volyn for the massacre victims, Poland’s top diplomat in Ukraine also highlighted “Ukrainian victims of Polish violence,” which sparked outrage in Poland and calls for his resignation.
With an election in Poland next year, and possibly one in Ukraine soon if the military situation allows, many suggest there is little hope for de-escalation. Zelenskyy and Nawrocki spoke for an hour last week on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Turkey, trying to ease tensions, but they didn’t reach any agreement.
Cichocki said the relationship is likely to recover to some extent—since most Poles recognize that Warsaw and Kyiv share a common enemy in Russia—but in the future, it may lack warmth and genuine commitment. “It will be limited to mutual interest, where we see that both Poles and Ukrainians benefit,” he said. “There will be no more romance, no more naivety, and Poland will become very strict on Ukraine’s EU integration.”
Hrytsak said any reckoning will take time, and blocking Ukraine’s path to European integration would be counterproductive: “All national reconciliation in Europe happened after wars, not during them. Ukraine has to win the war, or at least survive, and then we can start dealing with these complicated issues.”
He added that, given the long and complex history between the two countries, it was “kind of a miracle” that they managed the relationship so well after the fall of communism. Many predicted a new conflict back then, but a different path was taken. Now, the hard-won goodwill is fading fast. “The miracle has been shattered,” he said. “Where it goes from here could be very dangerous.”
Additional reporting by Jakub Krupa
Frequently Asked Questions
Here is a list of FAQs about the complex relationship between Poland and Ukraine balancing their current alliance against Russia with their difficult shared history
BeginnerLevel Questions
1 Why are Poland and Ukraine allies now
Because they share a huge common enemy Russia Both countries feel directly threatened by Russian aggression They cooperate on military aid border security and diplomacy to push back against Russian influence
2 What is the historical conflict between Poland and Ukraine
The main flashpoint is the Volhynia Massacre during World War II where Ukrainian nationalists killed tens of thousands of Polish civilians This event is a deep unhealed wound in Polish memory There are also older conflicts over territory and identity going back centuries
3 Does this history actually affect their alliance today
Yes significantly While they work together against Russia the historical bitterness creates mistrust and political friction It limits how deep their partnership can go and makes it harder to agree on longterm plans
4 Do regular Polish and Ukrainian people get along
Generally yes especially since the war began Millions of Ukrainians fled to Poland and were welcomed However there are underlying tensions Some Poles feel the history is being forgotten and some Ukrainians feel Poland uses the past to lecture them
5 What is the Volhynia Massacre in simple terms
It was a brutal ethnic cleansing campaign in 194344 The Ukrainian Insurgent Army attacked Polish villages in the Volhynia region killing an estimated 40000 to 100000 Polish civilians often in horrific ways
Intermediate Advanced Questions
6 How does the historical dispute slow down their military cooperation
It creates political obstacles For example Poland sometimes conditions full support on Ukraine officially acknowledging and apologizing for the Volhynia Massacre This slows down joint military planning and can delay the delivery of sensitive weapons or intelligence sharing
7 Is the conflict just about the past or are there current political issues
Its both Current issues include
