Radosław Sikorski, during a visit to Kiev, which began on 11 September 2026, called on Ukrainians not to carry people associated with UPA, liable for cultural cleansing in Poles. The head of the MFA hit the nail: cooperation against Russia must not require Poland to stay silent about its victims and its own history.
Clear words of the Polish minister in Kiev
Radosław Sikorski referred to Ukrainian memory policy during his visit to Kiev. According to Kresy.pl portal, the minister reminded Ukrainians that they should not be betting on pedestal people with ambiguous achievements. He pointed out that UPA has performed cultural cleansing in Poles.
The direct background of the message was the decision to give 1 of the Ukrainian military units the name “UPA heroes”. The very fact that specified a name is given to the modern armed formation of the country supported by Poland must rise objections. It's not about denying Ukrainians the right to their own memory. It is about the border behind which begins the public glorification of an organization charged with mass crimes on the Polish civilian population.
Alliance against Russia does not invalidate Polish memory
Poland has a vital interest in keeping Russian imperialism as far distant from our borders as possible. The assistance to the fighting Ukraine results from a hard calculation of security, not from the work to renounce the fact about Volyn and east Małopolska. These 2 things are not contradictory. A serious state can support a neighbour against an aggressor, while requiring respect for its victims.
Earlier, Warsaw protested after the decision of president Volodymyr Zelenski to give the military unit an honorary name referring to UPA. Sikorski then spoke about the disappointment of not taking into account Polish historical sensitivity. Today's words are clearer and more needed. In relations between states, kindness cannot replace truth.
Kiev should besides realize that The dispute about Ukrainian patrons in Poland concerns the memory of circumstantial victimsNot an abstract war of symbols. Families who have been murdered for decades have been awaiting search, exhumation, and worthy burials. all subsequent motion glorifying UPA exacerbates the distrust that Russian propaganda will surely effort to use. However, the work for this problem does not vanish just due to the fact that Moscow uses it.
Poland needs 2 hard rules
The first regulation is: Russia remains a threat to Poland, so it is forbidden to conduct a policy that helps Kremlin to subdue Ukraine. The second is equally important: no current geopolitical arrangement gives the right to minimize crimes in Poles or to build a cult of their perpetrators. National realism requires maintaining both of these principles at once.
Therefore, Sikorski's words deserve support. The Polish abroad Minister should talk clearly in Kiev that national memory is not a bargaining chip. Earlier Sikorski's visit to the Ukrainian capital took place in the shadow of Russian attacks, but the Moscow threat cannot service as an excuse for Ukrainian historical policy's mistakes.
The credibility of the country is at stake for Poland. If Warsaw does not consistently claim the truth, exhumations and worthy burials of victims, it sends a signal that Polish memory can be postponed. You can't. Good relations with Ukraine will only last if they are based on security, common respect and truth.
