Polish Defense Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz has announced that Poland has set three key conditions regarding the "Volyn tragedy" as part of efforts to normalize historical relations with Ukraine.
According to the Operative Information Center-OMM, the minister stated that for future cooperation between the two nations to be built on a solid foundation, the principles of truth, memory, and apology must be upheld.
Kosiniak-Kamysz emphasized that an open approach by the Ukrainian side toward historical events is of great importance. He stressed that preserving a shared historical memory is a responsibility for both nations, and that an official apology remains a crucial prerequisite for the further development of bilateral relations.
On July 11, Poland held commemorative events marking the anniversary of the "Volyn tragedy." Karol Nawrocki, head of the Institute of National Remembrance, reaffirmed that the Polish state will continue its policy of remembering and documenting the crimes attributed to Ukrainian nationalists during that period.
Furthermore, Polish authorities have announced they are working on an initiative to ban the use of the black-and-red flags associated with the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists (OUN) within Polish territory.
The Volyn tragedy refers to the massacres of ethnic Poles by the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA) in the Volhynia and Eastern Galicia regions during World War II. These historical events remain a sensitive and complex issue in Polish-Ukrainian diplomatic relations, often surfacing in political discourse as both nations navigate contemporary geopolitical challenges.
