Overview
- Poland’s president Karol Nawrocki withdrew the Order of the White Eagle from Volodymyr Zelensky after Kyiv named a military unit for the Ukrainian Insurgent Army, and Zelensky announced over the weekend of June 20 that he had returned the decoration.
- Ukraine confirmed on June 23 that Zelensky will not attend the Conference on the Reconstruction of Ukraine in Gdańsk and that Prime Minister Ioulia Svyrydenko will lead the delegation in his place.
- Three former Ukrainian presidents and other high‑profile figures followed Zelensky by returning Polish honors, producing a rare show of political unity in Kyiv in response to Warsaw’s decision.
- Polish leaders have publicly clashed over the issue with Prime Minister Donald Tusk urging de‑escalation while critics in Poland say the UPA name recalls wartime massacres that many Poles regard as crimes against civilians.
- The dispute threatens practical cooperation because Poland hosts over a million Ukrainians and serves as a logistics hub for aid, and observers warn it could complicate reconstruction contracts, refugee support and supply lines.