Poland condemns Lviv’s 2027 UPA commemoration

Poland condemned Lviv region's plan to mark 2027 in honour of the Ukrainian Insurgent Army and Roman Shukhevych, Notes from Poland reported in a news article on Oct. 21.

The dispute matters because Poland's foreign ministry said on Oct. 21 that the decision risked undermining recent reconciliation between Warsaw and Kyiv over their difficult shared history.

The ministry said that “Glorifying criminal figures is contrary to European values,” according to the report. Notes from Poland said the Ukrainian Insurgent Army, known as the UPA, led massacres of Poles during World War Two.

The Lviv regional council adopted resolutions on Tuesday proclaiming 2027 as the year of the UPA and Shukhevych, the article said. The source text did not include a response from the Lviv regional council or Ukraine's national authorities.

Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz wrote on X on Oct. 20 that the decision was unacceptable, did not build mutual trust between nations and strengthened divisions. He said Ukraine's authorities needed to distance themselves from the position.

The immediate question is whether officials in Kyiv address the regional council's move, as Poland continues to frame wartime memory as part of reconciliation with Ukraine.

Source: news article, Notes from Poland, Oct. 21, 2026