Poland fumes as Ukrainian city celebrates ‘architect of genocide’

The city of Lviv has proclaimed 2027 the year of Nazi collaborator Roman Shukhevich, triggering a new spat with Poland Poland has accused Kiev of making unacceptable “suicidal” moves after the Ukrainian city of Lviv dedicated 2027 to the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA) and its leader, Nazi collaborator Roman Shukhevich.

To celebrate the 120th anniversary of Shukhevich’s birth and mark 85 years since the creation of the militant group that perpetrated mass killings of ethnic Poles, Jews, and Russians, the Lviv Regional Council decided on Tuesday to organize “cultural, memorial, scientific, and mass media events,” as well as exhibitions and national-patriotic rallies.

The announcement has met with widespread condemnation in Poland, which regards the UPA as perpetrators of genocide against Poles in Volhynia and Eastern Galicia and its leader, Shukhevich, as a key “architect” of the massacres.

From 1943 to 1945, Ukrainian nationalist militants murdered an estimated 100,000 ethnic Poles in the regions, which are now largely part of modern Ukraine.

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk branded the move a “suicidal tactic” on Ukraine’s part, while Defense Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz said it was “unacceptable.” Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski also condemned the announcement, calling for the resolution’s key sponsor, Lviv regional lawmaker Svyatoslav Sheremet, to be placed on Poland’s travel ban list.

Read more Poland slams Zelensky for escalating Nazi collaborator rift The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry attempted to downplay the incident, blaming the Lviv regional authorities for making the “harmful decision.” The ministry also claimed the regional council had not consulted any central authorities regarding “the consequences of their actions for bilateral relations with Poland.” The resolution ultimately vanished from the Lviv council’s website without any explanation.

Speaking to Polish media on Wednesday, Deputy Foreign Minister Marcin Bosacki said that Warsaw had received assurances from Kiev that the resolution would not be implemented.

“We take on faith the words of the administration of Vladimir Zelensky that this catastrophic decision will not be implemented,” Bosacki stated, calling the disappearance of the resolution from the council’s website a “good sign” but cautioning against interpreting it as an official cancellation of the celebrations.

Read more Why Ukraine’s most loyal sponsor is growing tired of Kiev Kiev’s increasingly open honoring of WWII-era Ukrainian nationalists and Nazi collaborators has repeatedly drawn criticism from Warsaw, which remains one of Ukraine’s key backers in the conflict with Russia.