Ukrainian Ambassador to Poland Vasyl Bodnar reported that they plan to begin the exhumation of the victims of the Volyn tragedy in the spring.
He said this on TVN24, RAR reports.
The exact month of the start of work is currently unknown, as it all depends on the weather.
"We donʼt know exactly which month, but we are preparing for the fact that if the weather permits, all permits have been issued and the team from the Polish side is also ready to start this work," said Bodnar.
According to him, the first permit for the exhumation of bodies is in Puzhnyky — this is the old name of the current settlement of Sadove in the Ternopil region, it was there that in 2023 a mass grave was found, in which the bodies of murdered peasants were buried in 1945.
Experts are currently identifying all locations in Poland and Ukraine where bodies can be exhumed.
The Ukrainian ambassador explained that, according to Ukrainian law, a Ukrainian company must be licensed for such work. Poland already has such a partner, and this cooperation is also being developed with the Ukrainian department.
Poland will mainly finance everything, the Ukrainian side will partially provide certain subsidies for these works. According to Bodnar, the ministers of culture of the countries will inform the society about the results of the exhumation of the victims of the Volyn tragedy.
Volyn tragedy
In 1943-1944, mass murders of Poles took place in Volyn. The Polish Institute of National Remembrance cites official data of 120 000 Poles killed in Volyn and the southeastern provinces of the Second Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, and also mentions 5 000 Ukrainians killed. Ukrainian historians cite other figures: up to 20 000 Ukrainians killed and 35-40 000 Poles killed.
Discussions are also ongoing regarding the perpetrators and organizers of the crime. In Poland, the Volyn tragedy is called a "massacre," officially recognized as "genocide", and the Ukrainian Insurgent Army is blamed, but this interpretation is not shared in Ukraine.
After Ukraine gained independence, the issue of the Volyn tragedy was repeatedly raised by politicians in both countries. Ukraine and Poland held joint events to honor the victims and tried to find points of understanding. However, after Poland recognized the Volyn tragedy as genocide in 2016, discussions intensified. You can read more about the relations between Poland and Ukraine and the agreements of the countries in the context of the Volyn tragedy here.
The issue of the Volyn tragedy is also important in the context of Ukraineʼs European integration. The Polish Foreign Minister stated that his country would raise the issue of the exhumation of Polish victims of the Volyn tragedy in the first chapter of negotiations on Ukraineʼs membership in the EU.
He later stated that negotiations on Ukraineʼs EU membership would be difficult, but "no issues unrelated to EU membership" would affect Polandʼs position.
Polish Defense Minister Wladyslaw Kosińska-Kamyś also said that he would block Ukraineʼs accession to the EU until the issue of exhumation and commemoration of the victims of the Volyn tragedy is resolved. This position was supported by Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk.
"Ukraine will have to meet Polish expectations one way or another. It will not be a member of the EU without Polandʼs consent," he said.
In January of this year, it became known that Ukraine had for the first time allowed the exhumation of the bodies of Polish victims of the Volyn tragedy. After that, the countries exchanged lists of places where the remains of the bodies would be searched. Polish media wrote that permits for the search and exhumation in Ukraine would be issued separately for each burial site.
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