Poland tells Ukraine Volhynia victims' memory 'not negotiable' amid renewed history dispute

Poland's defense chief on Saturday said he met with a senior envoy of President Volodymyr Zelensky and raised Warsaw's objections to Ukraine's decision to name a military unit after the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA).

In a post on the US social media company X, Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz said he met with Kyrylo Budanov, a senior representative of the Ukrainian president's office, and told him that the memory of victims of the Volhynia massacres was "not subject to negotiation."

"Poland and Ukraine are partners in security matters. But in matters of history, we must tell each other the truth, because only in this way can we build the future," he added.

The latest dispute centers on the legacy of the UPA, a nationalist guerrilla force that fought for Ukrainian independence during and after World War II.

In Poland, the organization is primarily associated with the Volhynia massacres of 1943-44, during which Polish historians said tens of thousands of Polish civilians were killed by UPA units and local collaborators in Volhynia and eastern Galicia.

Poland's parliament has officially recognized the killings as genocide, while Ukraine has generally honored the UPA as part of its broader struggle against both Nazi Germany and Soviet rule.

The issue has repeatedly strained relations between Warsaw and Kyiv despite Poland's strong support for Ukraine in its war against Russia.

Tensions resurfaced in recent weeks following reports that a Ukrainian military formation had been named after the "Heroes of the UPA," drawing criticism from Polish politicians across the political spectrum.