Polish president moves to ban Ukrainian nationalist flag

ISTANBUL

Polish President Karol Nawrocki proposed legislation Tuesday that would ban symbols linked to Ukrainian nationalist groups responsible for mass killings of Poles during World War II.

It is a move likely to add strain to relations between Warsaw and Kyiv.

Nawrocki said his amendment to Poland’s law prohibiting Nazi and communist flags would also outlaw “Banderite symbols,” including the red-and-black flag of the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA) and the Stepan Bandera-led faction of the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists (OUN).

The UPA carried out the Volhynia Massacre from 1943 and 1945, in which as many as 100,000 Poles were killed in what is now western Ukraine, TVP World reported.

While Bandera is regarded as a war criminal in Poland, many in Ukraine view him as a national hero for his fight for independence.

“In order to eliminate Russian propaganda and to place Polish-Ukrainian relations on a foundation of genuine partnership, mutual respect, and sensitivity, I believe that our draft legislation should include the clear message: ‘Stop Banderism,’” Nawrocki said Monday.

He argued that Banderite symbols should be treated under the penal code on the same level as Nazi and Soviet communist emblems.

The proposal also calls for amending Poland’s Act on the Institute of National Remembrance to specifically reference crimes committed by the OUN-UPA.

The Ukrainian government said it would respond if the proposal becomes law.

“Any politicized decisions about allegedly equating Ukrainian symbols with Nazi and Communist ones may provoke an increase in negative sentiment in Ukrainian society and will require a response from Ukraine,” a Ukrainian diplomatic source told European Pravda.

The source added that Kyiv remains grateful for Poland’s support and expects the rights of Ukrainians in Poland to be safeguarded.

Relations were already under pressure after Nawrocki vetoed a bill that would have extended aid to Ukrainian refugee children in Poland.

The move drew criticism in Ukraine, where officials accused the president of seeking political gain by stoking grievances toward Ukrainians.

An estimated 1.6 million Ukrainians have emigrated to Poland since the war with Russia began in early 2022.