Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Polish President Andrzej Duda commemorated, on Sunday, the massacre inflicted on Poles by Ukrainian nationalists during World War II, which has caused tension between the two allied nations. Warsaw has positioned itself among the most supportive countries for Kyiv since the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022. However, the Volhynia massacre, which historians say resulted in the deaths of tens of thousands of Poles, continues to cast a shadow over the relations between the two countries, particularly as the date of commemoration on July 11 approaches, recognized as one of the bloodiest days in a series of killings that took place between 1943 and 1945.
Television footage showed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and his Polish counterpart Andrzej Duda in a church in Lutsk, western Ukraine, on Sunday, during a service held to honor the victims. Polish historians estimate that "up to 12,000 Ukrainians were killed in retaliatory actions by Poles following the massacre." The Polish presidential office and Zelensky tweeted: "Together, we commemorate all the innocent victims of Volhynia. Their memory unites us... Together we are stronger."
Zelensky also mentioned on Twitter that he had "brief but very substantive discussions" with Duda during the service about the upcoming NATO summit in Vilnius. Ukraine seeks decisions at that summit to advance its goal of joining the alliance. He added: "We agreed to work together to achieve the best possible outcome for Ukraine.”
The chief of Duda's office noted that "the fact that the leaders commemorated the victims of the massacre together is a historical development, but more work still needs to be done." He continued: "This is not the end of this difficult road... We will, of course, continue to explain to our Ukrainian friends this historical truth." The Polish parliament states that "the killings that took place between 1943 and 1945 by Ukrainian nationalists bear the characteristics of genocide." Ukraine rejects this assertion and refers to the events in Volhynia as occurrences arising from a conflict between Poland and Ukraine that impacted both nations.
This year, the Volhynia massacre led to an unusual public dispute between Poland and Ukraine, after a spokesperson for the Polish Foreign Ministry stated that Zelensky should apologize and ask for forgiveness regarding what occurred during the massacre.
