Poland and Ukraine's difficult history creates political minefield for Tusk

WARSAW, June 25 - As policymakers discuss Ukraine's reconstruction in Poland on Thursday, the government in Warsaw is struggling to defuse tensions over history that could hamper collaboration as Kyiv eyes a path to peace and European Union membership.

President Karol Nawrocki's decision to strip Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelenskiy of Poland's top honour due to a dispute over the naming of an army unit after insurgents who massacred Poles in World War Two unleashed the biggest diplomatic crisis between the neighbours since Russia's 2022 invasion.

Zelenskiy opted not to attend Thursday's Ukraine Reconstruction Conference in the Baltic port city of Gdansk, as he sought to insulate the gathering from the row.

Nawrocki's move also marked a challenge to the pro-European coalition government of Prime Minister Donald Tusk, which will have to balance its more conciliatory approach to Kyiv with rising negativity about Ukraine among voters.

"It's plain to see that Nawrocki truly has it in his mind that he must make life difficult for the government at all costs, even at the expense of Poland's position, and he's certainly succeeding," said a source close to the government.

Nawrocki has rejected any suggestion that domestic politics played a part in his decision to strip President Zelenskiy of the Order of the White Eagle, Poland's highest honour.

SOURING RELATIONS

While Poles remain strong supporters of Kyiv's war effort, public sentiment towards Ukraine has grown increasingly negative in recent years due to weariness with refugees, disputes over grain imports and the legacy of the World War Two killings.

According to an SW Research poll for Rzeczpospolita daily, 51.9% of Poles said Zelenskiy's decision to name an army unit after the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA) had harmed their attitude towards Ukraine.

Some Ukrainians regard the UPA as heroes for the resistance they mounted against the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany, and as symbols of Kyiv's struggle for independence from Moscow.

But the UPA was also involved in the Volhynia massacres, a series of killings from 1943 to 1945 in which Poland says around 100,000 Poles were killed by Ukrainian nationalists. Thousands of Ukrainians also died in reprisal killings.

Tusk and Zelenskiy met in Brussels just a day before Nawrocki decided to strip the Ukrainian president of the Order of the White Eagle. Two sources close to the Polish government said they had discussed how to de-escalate the situation.

"The next thing was the escalation by Nawrocki... and we have a massive problem," the source said.

Nawrocki first raised the issue in May and his allies say he gave Zelenskiy ample time to reverse his decision, accusing the Ukrainian president of deliberately offending Poland to distract from corruption scandals closer to home.

"The world is increasingly talking about how much money was stolen by Ukrainians associated with Zelenskiy's team, making it even more obvious that he's trying to divert attention, also by stirring up historical disputes and insulting Poles," Marcin Przydacz, Nawrocki's foreign policy adviser, said on Monday.

For his part, Zelenskiy said Nawrocki was trying to score political points ahead of a 2027 parliamentary election in which his allies from the nationalist Law and Justice (PiS) party hope to return to government.

A SEAT AT THE TABLE

Despite the tensions, most Poles see Ukraine's security as vital to their own, and believe that Poland should be involved in any negotiations aimed at bringing the conflict to an end.

"Every decent, common-sense person knows that the quarrel between Poland and Ukraine is the greatest gift for the Russian president," Tusk said on Wednesday.

However, Tusk's absence from a meeting of the leaders of Britain, Germany and France, known as the E3, with Zelenskiy in London this month raised concerns in Poland that it was being sidelined as Western European powers try to steer Kyiv towards talks with Moscow in the near future.

Tusk did join the E3 leaders in Berlin on Wednesday in an expanded E5 format that also included Italy's prime minister.

"Poland has had and will have no doubts — the future of Europe, the Western world and Ukraine in this dramatic moment will depend on how well we preserve European and transatlantic unity," he said at that gathering.

Tusk added that countries on NATO's eastern flank must be represented in all key formats.

Diplomats say escalation of the current dispute could make it more difficult for Warsaw to play a key role in negotiations.

"If Poland wants to be involved in discussions on Ukraine, including formats like the E3, it is no surprise they are not invited if this is how they behave," said a European diplomat.

Government sources say the administration cannot risk taking part in a competition over who can seem tougher on Ukraine that radicalises sentiments among Poles.

"The next step is violence on the streets, so you simply can't afford it," the source close to the government said. REUTERS