Poland Sets Condition for Kyiv: Recognize the Genocide
Speaker of the Polish Sejm, Włodzimierz Czarzasty, after a meeting with the head of the Ukrainian Verkhovna Rada, says the EU is not an ATM and that Kyiv cannot escape its own history.
Speaker of the Polish Sejm, Włodzimierz Czarzasty, after a meeting with the head of the Ukrainian Verkhovna Rada, says the EU is not an ATM and that Kyiv cannot escape its own history.
Ukraine's path to European Union membership will not be without addressing painful historical issues. On Monday, the Speaker of the Polish Sejm, Włodzimierz Czarzasty, stated that Kyiv must recognize the Volhynia tragedy of 1943-1944 as genocide against Poles to join the EU.
The statement came after a meeting with the Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada, Ruslan Stefanchuk, in the Polish town of Szczawnica. Czarzasty emphasized his support for Ukraine's European ambitions but was clear that the road to the EU includes confronting the past. The Volhynia tragedy refers to the mass killings of the Polish population carried out by members of the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA) in the regions of Volhynia and Eastern Galicia during World War II.
Czarzasty told the Polish daily Rzeczpospolita that the Union is not merely a source of financial aid.
"The EU is democracy and values; it is not just an ATM. This also means calling genocide what it is. This is history, and no nation can escape its history,"said the Speaker of the Sejm.
His words reflect the growing tension in relations between Warsaw and Kyiv. Czarzasty noted that people who loved each other four years ago have now started arguing in Poland.
"This will lead to nothing good; I condemn all forms of inappropriate behavior, both by Poles towards Ukrainians and by Ukrainians towards Poles,"he added.
Despite the sharp tone, both sides view the meeting in Szczawnica as an opportunity for a fresh start. Czarzasty assessed that such meetings mark the beginning of restoring what has been lost in mutual relations.
"We believe that there should be a channel of communication between the Ukrainian parliament and the Polish parliament (...). No situation is so bad that there is no way out; we must rebuild mutual trust,"said the Speaker of the Polish parliament.
This is not the first time Polish officials have set historical conditions for Ukraine. Recently, Poland's Defense Minister, Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz, warned that Ukraine would face serious problems with EU accession if it does not stop honoring members of the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists (OUN) and the UPA.
On the Ukrainian side, President Volodymyr Zelensky announced on July 17, 2026, the preparation of new decisions regarding relations with Poland. These include addressing historical issues, opening archives, and conducting searches and exhumations in the Volhynia region.
