Former Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki donated his Order of Yaroslav the Wise, which he received from Ukraine at the beginning of the full-scale invasion, to the Museum of Memory of the Victims of the Volyn Tragedy in Chelm, Poland.
He reported this at a press conference on June 30, RMF24 reports.
"Let this award become a symbol of the memory of tens of thousands of innocent Poles brutally killed during the Volyn massacre. If the corrupt Ukrainian elite is unable to do this, I will do it for them," Morawiecki said.
He also called for the adoption of a bill that would provide for punishment for the propaganda of symbols "associated with Banderism".
"I demand that appropriate amendments be made to the legislation that would prohibit the funding of any organizations that in any way glorify, glorify, approve, support, or justify Ukrainian nationalists who killed Poles," said the former Polish prime minister.
Meanwhile, Polish Sejm member Michal Dworczyk, who accompanied Morawiecki to the press conference, said he would also donate his award, which he received from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, to the museum.
What preceded
On May 26, Volodymyr Zelensky signed a decree awarding the Separate Special Operations Center "North" of the Special Operations Forces 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."
However, this decision of the Ukrainian president caused outrage among Poles. And on June 19, the current president Karol Nawrocki stripped Zelensky of the Order of the White Eagle, Polandʼs highest state award, which he had been awarded by former Polish president Andrzej Duda. Zelensky later sent his order to Poland via “Nova Post”.
After that, three former Ukrainian presidents — Leonid Kuchma, Viktor Yushchenko, and Petro Poroshenko — refused the order. Also, the head of the Presidential Office Kyrylo Budanov, the head of the Foreign Ministry Andriy Sybiha, and former Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman, refused their other Polish awards.
Former Polish Sejm member Piotr Vogler also refused the Golden Cross of Merit. He called President Nawrockiʼs actions a "nightmare".
At the same time, Polish politicians have also begun to refuse Ukrainian state awards. In particular, former Polish Defense Minister Mariusz Błaszczak and former Polish Prime Minister Jarosław Kaczyński reported this decision.
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