Poland to build memorial for WWII victims amid historical tensions with Ukraine

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk announced that Warsaw will erect a "Wall of Remembrance" with an eternal flame to honor victims of what he termed "genocide" during World War II. The memorial will bear the names of all found and identified victims, addressing a long-standing historical dispute between Poland and Ukraine over civilian killings during the war.

Tusk's announcement came on the eve of the anniversary of the "Bloody Sunday" of 1943, when units of the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA) and the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists (OUN) killed thousands of Poles in Volhynia. Polish estimates suggest 70,000 to 100,000 civilians died between 1943 and 1945, with up to 12,000 Ukrainians also killed during the reprisals. In Ukraine, the UPA and OUN are viewed as independence fighters against the Red Army and Soviet Union.

The historical tensions have impacted bilateral relations, particularly as Poland strongly supports Ukraine against Russia's invasion. Earlier in May, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy caused outrage in Poland by naming a military unit in honor of the UPA. In response, Polish President Andrzej Duda revoked the country's highest award, the Order of the White Eagle, from Zelenskyy.

Tusk emphasized that memory and truth should help build a better future without hatred. "A Europe of peace and mutual respect... became possible thanks to truth and calling things by their real names," he stated. Polish Defense Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz, speaking at a commemoration in Olyka, Ukraine, stressed the need for both nations to "move forward together" and "take responsibility for the past." He added that friendship means telling each other the truth, even the difficult truth, with the aim of healing old wounds rather than reopening them.

Ukraine's Ambassador to Poland, Vasyl Bodnar, laid a wreath in Warsaw, calling for reconciliation to counter the "Russian threat." Similar ceremonies were held in Chełm, Poland, where Mayor Jakub Banaszek stated the commemorations are not directed against modern Ukraine but are an expression of remembrance for historical victims.