Poland should look ahead in relations with Kyiv after "moral victory" with Order, says Polish MP

Urszula Pasławska, an MP from the Polish People's Party (PSL) coalition, has described the decision to strip President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of the Order of the White Eagle as a moral victory and argued that attention should now shift to future relations with Kyiv, including the Ukraine Recovery Conference.

Source: Pasławska on air with Polsat News, as reported by European Pravda

Details: In Pasławska's view, now that the award has been returned, there is no possibility of reversing the decision, and Poland should focus on its future relationship with Kyiv.

Quote: "We should focus on the conference on Ukraine's reconstruction and on our future responses to similar events, because I have no doubt that they will occur."

Details: Pasławska stressed that Poland's participation in Ukraine's reconstruction should be a priority, particularly given the scale of assistance provided to Ukraine and its citizens by Polish society. In addition, she noted that a conference devoted to rebuilding Ukraine would make little sense without Ukrainian participation.

Quote: "Such a conference would not be effective; it would not be constructive. We have achieved a moral victory, but we will only be able to assess it over time. Throughout history, we have quarrelled with our own people, with allies and neighbours, and that has certainly not worked in our favour."

Details: Pasławska was asked about comments by Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha, who promised a symmetrical response to actions Kyiv considers unfriendly towards Ukraine. She urged Poland not to respond in the same manner.

"As a country with greater experience and a longer democratic tradition within the European Union, we should not allow ourselves to be drawn into such emotional games. We cannot behave as the Ukrainians do. We must act in accordance with Poland's national interest," she said.

"Ukrainians must also realise that this kind of behaviour does not bring them any closer to the European Union because Poland will have a great deal to say on that matter," she added.

In her view, further disputes over historical figures or the names given to Ukrainian military units could deepen tensions between Warsaw and Kyiv.

"If both sides do not make an effort to overcome this conflict (...), we will find ourselves on a path towards confrontation, and in the long term Poland will simply lose out," she said.

Background:

• On the evening of 19 June, Nawrocki took the decision to strip Zelenskyy of the Order of the White Eagle in connection with the naming of a Ukrainian military unit after the Heroes of the Ukrainian Insurgent Army. He said Poland would not allow EU accession for those who do not understand the need to renounce the "cult of totalitarianism and violence".
• Following the decision, a number of current and former Ukrainian officials announced that they would return their Polish honours. Questions were also raised about whether Zelenskyy would attend this year's Ukraine Recovery Conference, scheduled to take place in Gdańsk, Poland.
• On 20 June, Zelenskyy said that he had sent the order back to Karol Nawrocki by post.

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