Polish President Karol Nawrocki announced on May 29, 2026, that he will seek to revoke the Order of the White Eagle awarded to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. The announcement followed Zelenskyy’s decree on May 26 naming a Ukrainian special operations military unit the "Heroes of the UPA" (Ukrainian Insurgent Army) [1, 2].
The UPA is viewed by some Ukrainian nationalists as fighters against Soviet and Nazi forces. However, Polish sources emphasize the UPA’s role in massacres of approximately 100,000 Poles in Volhynia and Eastern Galicia between 1943 and 1945. Nawrocki stated, "This decision wounds the memory of the victims. Honouring the UPA is incompatible with efforts to build genuine reconciliation between Poles and Ukrainians" [1, 2].
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk described Zelenskyy’s decree as "wounding our historical sensitivity and worrying from the point of view of our relations" [1]. Nobel Peace Prize winner Lech Walesa said he has stopped wearing a Ukrainian flag pin because Zelenskyy’s honoring of the UPA "insulted me and all our massacred compatriots" [1].
Poland remains a vital political and military backer of Ukraine in its fight against Russia, despite this dispute escalating tensions [1, 2].
The advisory Chapter of the Order of the White Eagle is scheduled to meet on June 8, 2026, to consider the potential stripping of the honor from Zelenskyy [1].
