Zelenskyy signs law establishing National Pantheon of Ukraine with criteria for historical figures
The legislation permits national honors for historical heads of state and military commanders, including leaders from the Ukrainian Insurgent Army, following a 287-vote parliamentary approval in July.
Presidential signing and institutional criteria
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed the law establishing the National Pantheon of Ukraine, with the confirmation published on the official website of the Verkhovna Rada on 23 August 2026. The legislation defines the legal criteria for historical figures and former state leaders to receive state honors in the new commemorative site. Under the provisions of the document, the pantheon will commemorate individuals who served as heads of state or equivalent roles in historical Ukrainian state entities. These entities include Rus, the Kingdom of Rus, the Zaporozhian Host (Ukrainian Cossack State), the Ukrainian People's Republic, the West Ukrainian People's Republic, the Ukrainian State, and Carpathian Ukraine. In addition, former presidents of modern Ukraine may be honored within the site, with the specific exclusion of any president removed from office through constitutional impeachment.
Military commanders and the Volhynia debate
The law permits the inclusion of supreme commanders and equivalent officers from several armed formations, including the military forces of the Ukrainian People's Republic, the Ukrainian Halych Army, the Carpathian Sich national defense organization, and the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA). The potential commemoration of UPA figures remains a point of friction between Poland and Ukraine. According to Polish historians, UPA units carried out coordinated attacks on approximately 150 Polish settlements in Volhynia in July 1943, an episode classified in Poland as the Volhynia genocide. Responsibility in Polish historical assessments is attributed to the Stepan Bandera faction of the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists (OUN) and its armed wing, the UPA. Many Ukrainian historians and politicians interpret these events as part of a wider conflict with shared responsibility, while public memory in Ukraine views the OUN and UPA primarily as symbols of anti-Soviet resistance and national independence. Recent Polish public discussion has also addressed the naming of a Ukrainian military unit after UPA heroes.
Parliamentary approval and national sovereignty
The legislative process began with a proposal presented during Ukraine's Constitution Day commemorations, where the president outlined the intent to assemble historical figures across all centuries.
No one and never will tell us how to live, how to speak, whom to love, whom to be grateful to, and what heroes to respect.
On 1 July, the Verkhovna Rada adopted the bill in full, securing 287 votes in a chamber that formally holds 450 seats. Parliamentary Chairman Ruslan Stefanchuk appealed to deputies for their support ahead of the vote, stating that the decision shapes national history.
- President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announces the National Pantheon bill
- Verkhovna Rada passes the Pantheon legislation with 287 votes
- Volodymyr Zelenskyy speaks on the Pantheon at the Veterans Forum in Kyiv
- Verkhovna Rada website confirms the presidential signature on the law
Address to the Veterans Forum
Addressing the annual Veterans Forum in Kyiv on Saturday, 22 August, Zelenskyy reiterated that the state will honor individuals whose historical contributions inspire present-day Ukrainian resilience. He emphasized that the nation will determine its historical pantheon without external influence, remarking that being strong means being free.
The Ukrainian Pantheon will definitely be created, and only Ukrainians will decide who is a hero for us.
The publication on the parliamentary website completes the enactment of the law, establishing the statutory framework for commemorating historical leaders and military figures.
