Zelensky Returns Poland's Highest Honor After Row Over WWII Massacre Unit

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky returned Poland's highest state honour — the Order of the White Eagle — on Saturday, one day after Polish President Karol Nawrocki formally revoked it in a dispute rooted in one of the most painful chapters in Polish-Ukrainian history.

What Triggered the Dispute

The row centres on a decree Zelensky signed on May 26th, naming a unit of Ukraine's Special Operations Forces after the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA), a paramilitary organisation that operated during the 1940s and 1950s. In Poland, the UPA is widely associated with the Volhynia massacres, in which tens of thousands of Polish civilians were killed in what Poland officially designates as genocide. The naming was celebrated by Ukrainian nationalists but caused immediate outrage in Warsaw.

Awards Revoked and Returned

Former Polish President Andrzej Duda had originally bestowed the Order of the White Eagle on Zelensky in 2023 for his "services to security, resilience and the defence of human rights." Current President Nawrocki stripped the award on June 19th, calling the UPA unit's naming a deliberate provocation. Zelensky returned the medal with a statement saying he believed the order "was meant for the Ukrainian People and our army" and that "the future will confirm the respect Ukrainians deserve." Four senior Ukrainian officials, including military intelligence chief Kyrylo Budanov, also returned their Polish state awards in solidarity.

Broader Implications

The diplomatic row strains an otherwise crucial partnership: Poland has been one of Ukraine's most steadfast European allies, providing billions in military and humanitarian aid. Both governments stressed they remain committed to bilateral ties, but analysts say the historical disagreement risks giving Russia propaganda material and undermining the unity of Ukraine's European support coalition at a sensitive moment in the ongoing war.