Poland Strips Zelenskyy of Top Honor Over WWII History

Polish President Karol Nawrocki revoked the Order of the White Eagle, Poland's highest honor, from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on June 19, 2026. The decision followed a May decree by Zelenskyy naming a Special Operations Forces unit the "Heroes of the UPA," referring to the Ukrainian Insurgent Army. Poland recognizes the UPA's actions during World War II, specifically the Volhynia and Eastern Galicia massacres of approximately 100,000 Poles, as genocide.

In response, Zelenskyy returned the honor by mail and accused Nawrocki of seeking political advantage ahead of Poland's 2027 parliamentary elections. Several top Ukrainian officials—including Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha and Head of the Defence Intelligence of Ukraine Kyrylo Budanov—along with former presidents Leonid Kuchma, Viktor Yushchenko, and Petro Poroshenko, renounced their own Polish state awards in solidarity. Ukrainian officials characterized the revocation as a strategic mistake and an unfriendly act that benefits Moscow.

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk urged both leaders to de-escalate, warning that the rift provides a gift to Vladimir Putin and threatens regional security. The diplomatic crisis led Zelenskyy to skip the Ukraine Recovery Conference in Gdańsk on June 25, sending Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko to lead the delegation instead. Nawrocki maintained that while Poland's strategic security support for Ukraine continues, the government may block Ukraine's European Union accession if Kyiv persists in the cult of the UPA.