Zelensky to skip Ukraine reconstruction conference in Poland as WWII dispute deepens

A dispute rooted in the past

The immediate trigger was Zelensky's decision in late May to name a special forces unit after the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA), a nationalist formation that fought for Ukrainian independence against Soviet, Nazi and Polish rule. In Ukraine, UPA partisans are widely seen as heroes. In Poland, they are remembered as perpetrators of the Volhynia massacres, in which up to 100,000 Polish civilians were killed between 1943 and 1945. The Polish parliament in 2016 labelled the killings genocide, and the episode remains one of the most painful unresolved issues between the neighbours.

The exchange of honours

On Friday 19 June, Polish President Karol Nawrocki revoked Zelensky's Order of the White Eagle, Poland's highest state honour, accusing Ukraine of glorifying a group responsible for mass atrocities. Zelensky returned the order the following day, saying it had been bestowed on the Ukrainian people and army, and pointedly noted that previous recipients included Catherine II, Mussolini and Gerhard Schröder. Three former Ukrainian presidents, Leonid Kuchma, Viktor Yushchenko and Petro Poroshenko, also sent back their Polish awards in solidarity.

“We believed that the Order of the White Eagle, awarded in 2023, was meant for the Ukrainian People and our army. Today, I sent the Order back to the President of Poland.”

Conference downgraded

Ukraine's prime minister Yulia Svyrydenko announced on Tuesday 23 June that she would lead the delegation to the two-day Ukraine Recovery Conference in Gdansk, which starts on Thursday. The annual event, previously held in Rome, Berlin and Lugano, is meant to rally billions of dollars in investment and secure contracts for rebuilding Ukraine after the war. Svyrydenko said Kyiv expects to sign several agreements, including on strengthening its battered energy infrastructure.

Political fallout in Warsaw

The row carries a strong domestic dimension in Poland, where Nawrocki, a conservative, is seen as positioning himself against the pro-European government of Donald Tusk ahead of 2027 parliamentary elections. Zelensky himself accused Nawrocki of exploiting the issue for party advantage, comparing it to Viktor Orbán's tactics. Tusk, who is co-hosting the conference, has tried to calm tensions, stressing that the reconstruction money is international, not Polish, and that 200 agreements were prepared.

“We're talking about hundreds of billions of dollars, and this is not Polish money.”

Wider implications for the alliance

The quarrel threatens to erode the close partnership that has made Polish logistics a lifeline for Ukraine's war effort and turned Poland into one of Kyiv's staunchest military and humanitarian backers since 2022. Ukrainian lawmaker Iryna Geraschenko warned of the mutual dependence, noting that Poland's security is also reinforced by the Ukrainian armed forces, while the opposition called on the Ukrainian delegation to use the forum to repair bilateral ties.

“We depend on Polish logistics, and the Poles' security today is ensured by the self-sacrifice and bravery of the Ukrainian Armed Forces.”