The rhetoric of some Polish politicians regarding Ukraine is reminiscent of Russian propaganda narratives, believes the ex-minister.
Dmytro Kuleba / © Associated Press
Certain Polish politicians express views on Ukraine that are quite close to the narratives long employed by Russian propaganda.
This was stated by the former Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, Dmytro Kuleba, as reported by “Radio Liberty.”
However, he does not equate Poland with the Russian Federation, as it concerns only a segment of the Polish political spectrum, not the country’s state policy.
According to the diplomat, he is concerned by the use of historical terms and statements by individual Polish politicians that echo Russian narratives.
“When I hear about the Kresy Wschodnie (Eastern Borderlands, ‘Little Poland’), how does it differ from the Russian project ‘Novorossiya’? When I hear that Lviv is a Polish city, how does it differ from claims that Kharkiv or Odesa are Russian cities? When Moscow talks about the ‘denazification’ of Ukraine, and now this is starting to be discussed in Poland, it raises serious questions,” he noted.
At the same time, Kuleba emphasized that Poland, unlike Russia, has the opportunity to change this course.
Ukraine-Poland Scandal – What is Known
On May 26, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed a decree awarding the honorary title “named after the Heroes of UPA” to the Separate Center for Special Operations “North” of the Special Operations Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
On May 29, Polish President Andrzej Duda stated that he wishes to strip Zelenskyy of the Order of the White Eagle, the highest state award presented to him in 2023. He regarded this decree by the Ukrainian president as an insult to Poles.
In response to Warsaw’s actions, the following day, June 20, a number of Ukrainian politicians and officials publicly announced that they too were renouncing their Polish awards. Among them were the Head of the Office of the President, Kyrylo Budanov, as well as former heads of state Leonid Kuchma, Viktor Yushchenko, and Petro Poroshenko. On the same day, Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced that he had officially sent the Order of the White Eagle back to the President of Poland, publishing photos from a “Nova Poshta” branch.
Warsaw openly suggests that this legislative step could significantly worsen relations between the countries, which has prompted Polish representatives in European institutions to take reciprocal steps.
Meanwhile, the European Conservatives and Reformists faction in the European Parliament has formally submitted a proposal for a debate and subsequent adoption of a resolution commemorating the victims of the “UPA genocide.”
The leader of the Polish Law and Justice party, Jarosław Kaczyński, wrote a letter to his party members in which he once again spoke out against Ukraine’s accession to the European Union until Kyiv changes its historical policy.
Zbigniew Bogucki, the head of the Chancellery of the President of Poland, has been added to the database of the “Myrotvorets” website. Commenting on the Volhynia tragedy and the attitude towards Stepan Bandera, the head of the Polish president’s chancellery stated that, in the opinion of the Polish authorities and a significant part of society, “the glorification of Bandera and his followers” does not align with European and transatlantic values. At the same time, he used the phrase “Eastern Lesser Poland” in reference to the western regions of Ukraine.
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