The Polish government explained why Nawrocki was not invited to the conference on the restoration of Ukraine in Gdansk

The Polish government explained that the countryʼs President Karol Nawrocki was not invited to the conference on the reconstruction of Ukraine (URC-2026) due to the "format of the event". The conference will take place on June 25-26 in Gdansk.

This was stated by Polish government spokesman Adam Szlapka on Polsat News.

According to Szlapka, the format of the conference is such that it is prepared and organized by the executive authorities responsible for the economic, foreign and domestic policies of the state. Szlapka also believes that the criticism from representatives of Nawrockiʼs office is a "game". He explained that during similar events in Germany and Italy, the presidents of these countries did not participate in them.

"Perhaps Mr. Rafal Leszkiewicz (the Polish presidentʼs spokesman) does not know what different formats of meetings look like. Marcin Przydach (head of the Polish presidentʼs International Policy Bureau) certainly knows this very well, so when he questions it, it is clear that this is a game," the countryʼs government noted.

On June 23, Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko reported that she would lead the Ukrainian delegation at the conference in Gdansk, although it was expected that President Volodymyr Zelensky would be present.

The Ukraine Recovery Conference is scheduled to take place in Gdansk on June 25-26. This is the fourth annual conference, following previous ones in London, Berlin, and Rome. The event aims to strengthen international support for Ukraineʼs reconstruction and attract new investments.

Conflict over the name of the SOF unit

On May 26, Volodymyr Zelensky signed a decree awarding the Separate Special Operations Center "North" of the Special Operations Forces (SOF) of the Armed Forces of Ukraine the honorary title "named after the Heroes of UPA". The document states that this was done "to restore the historical traditions of the national army".

Later, former Polish President Lech Walesa reported that due to this decree he would stop wearing a badge with the Ukrainian flag, and for the same reason, the Ukrainian flag, which had been hanging there since 2022 along with the flags of Poland and the EU, was removed from the town hall in Lublin, Poland.

On June 2, the Vice Speaker of the Polish Sejm Krzysztof Bosak called for blocking Ukraineʼs movement towards the EU until Kyiv "departs from the cult of criminals and unblocks all exhumations" of the victims of the Volyn tragedy.

On June 19, Polish President Karol Nawrocki stripped Zelensky of Polandʼs highest state award, the Order of the White Eagle. Presidents Leonid Kuchma, Viktor Yushchenko, and Petro Poroshenko subsequently renounced the order. The head of the Presidentʼs Office Kyrylo Budanov, the Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha, and former Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman all renounced their other Polish awards.

Author: Khrystyna Pitsuriak

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