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Former Polish lawmaker returns state honor in protest over Zelensky's award revocation
The Kyiv Independent • • world
Key Points:
- Former Polish lawmaker Piotr Fogler returned his Golden Cross of Merit in protest against President Karol Nawrocki's decision to revoke Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky's Order of the White Eagle.
- Zelensky was awarded Poland's highest state honor in 2023 by then-President Andrzej Duda, but Nawrocki stripped it following Zelensky's controversial decision to rename a Ukrainian military unit after the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA).
- The UPA is a contentious symbol due to its role in the Volyn massacres during World War II, which remains a sensitive issue in Polish-Ukrainian relations.
- Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk warned that escalating the dispute over historical memory is a strategic mistake that could harm both Poland and Ukraine.
- In response to the revocation, former Ukrainian Presidents Leonid Kuchma, Viktor Yuschenko, and Petro Poroshenko also announced they would return their Polish honors, intensifying diplomatic tensions.
