Russian officials told Navrotsky that the victims of the Volhynia tragedy were Soviet citizens
The Russian Embassy in Poland responded to Polish President Karol Nawrocki’s decision to strip Volodymyr Zelenskyy of the Order of the White Eagle and chose to reiterate its own version of the events surrounding the Volhynia tragedy.
The Russian diplomatic mission stated that the victims of the UPA’s actions in 1943–1944 were predominantly ethnic Poles, but after Western Ukraine was incorporated into the USSR in 1939, they allegedly became citizens of the Soviet Union.
“The victims of Ukrainian nationalists from the UPA during the Volhynia massacre were predominantly Poles. But as of November 1, 1939, they were Soviet citizens,” the Russian Embassy’s statement reads.
Russian diplomats also claim that after Poland’s defeat in September 1939, Western Ukraine became part of the USSR as part of a “reunification” with the Ukrainian SSR.
The Russian Embassy’s post was shared by Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova.
Source: Polsat News.
Ukraine is calling on Poland to make measured decisions and engage in diplomatic dialogue amid a new escalation in bilateral relations.
The third President of Ukraine, Viktor Yushchenko, emphasized that in relations between Ukraine and Poland, it is important to uphold the political formula of “we forgive and ask for forgiveness.”
Former Polish Sejm deputy Piotr Fogler returned his state award—the “Golden Cross of Merit”—to the president as a sign of protest and solidarity with Ukraine.
Former Ukrainian Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman announced that he had returned the Knight’s Cross of the Order of Merit of the Republic of Poland, which he received in 2011 for promoting regional cooperation between Ukrainian and Polish cities.
