Russian agents seek to inflame Polish-Ukrainian tensions, Polish foreign minister says
Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski has said Russia is seeking to stir up emotions surrounding historical disputes between Poland and Ukraine.
Source: Sikorski speaking on RMF FM, a Polish radio station; European Pravda
Details: Sikorski said that Poland has spent two weeks trying to persuade Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to change the name of the military unit named after the Heroes of the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA).
Quote from Sikorski: "Unfortunately, we did not succeed. But this fuelling of emotions around historical tragedies – we can see that Russian agents are quite literally trying to inflame Polish-Ukrainian tensions. These millions of online trolls are also playing their part, and we know who is pleased about this. Mr Medvedev [Deputy Chairman of Russia's Security Council] and Ms Zakharova [Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman] are goading us into it. So I suggest we reflect on this, because since the 17th century, disputes, crimes or Polish-Ukrainian conflicts have always served our enemy."
For reference: The Ukrainian Insurgent Army, or UPA, was a nationalist paramilitary organisation that fought for Ukrainian independence during and after World War II, primarily against Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union. Poland believes that the UPA was responsible for what it considers the genocide of Poles during the Volyn (Volhynia) tragedy, a series of events that led to the ethnic cleansing of the Polish and Ukrainian populations in 1943. The tragedy was part of a long-standing rivalry between Ukrainians and Poles in what is now Ukraine's west.
Background:
- Volodymyr Zelenskyy met his Polish counterpart Karol Nawrocki at the NATO summit in Ankara. He described the meeting as "an important and necessary conversation".
- During a meeting with his Polish counterpart Radosław Sikorski in Warsaw on 3 July, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha proposed "a package of anti-crisis steps", aimed at easing tensions between the two countries.
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