Polish PM urges Poles to restrain excessive emotions regarding Ukraine

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said he hopes Ukrainians will rethink their approach to the Volyn tragedy and urged people in Poland to avoid inflaming emotions. [The Volyn (Volhynia) tragedy was a series of events that led to the ethnic cleansing of the Polish and Ukrainian populations in 1943 during World War II. It was part of a long-standing rivalry between Ukrainians and Poles in what is now Ukraine's west. Poland considers the Volyn tragedy a genocide of Poles – ed.]

Source: European Pravda, citing PAP, Poland's national news agency

Details: Tusk said that on 11 July, the anniversary of the Volyn tragedy, he will make a statement on the Polish-Ukrainian dispute over the UPA (Ukrainian Insurgent Army).

Quote: "Ahead of the anniversary, I would like to address all decent, wise and responsible Ukrainians. Remember that this great European community is built on truth, and truth is an absolutely necessary foundation for reconciliation. That is why I am counting on Ukraine to reconsider its approach, but I am also calling on everyone in Poland to hold back excessive emotions."

More details: Responding to a question at a press conference in Osieki Lęborskie, Poland's Pomeranian Voivodeship, about the meeting between the Polish and Ukrainian presidents, Tusk stressed he views the fact that Nawrocki and Zelenskyy met very positively. he said that "the Russians would be happiest if a serious crisis broke out in Polish-Ukrainian relations".

Tusk acknowledged he has not received information from the Presidential Palace on how the conversation went.

Quote: "But the signals both presidents are sending publicly indicate that at least the two of them are certainly aware that this crisis has gone too far and is harming both Poland and Ukraine."

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 tragedy.

Background:

• Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski has said Russia is seeking to stir up emotions surrounding historical disputes between Poland and Ukraine.
• President Volodymyr Zelenskyy met his Polish counterpart Karol Nawrocki at the NATO summit in Ankara. He described the meeting as "an important and necessary conversation".

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