The presidents of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, and of Poland, Karol Nawrocki, have held their first face-to-face meeting this Wednesday after their usual disagreements on how to address the shared past between both countries resurfaced strongly a few weeks ago. The controversy reached such a magnitude that the Ukrainian leader was stripped of the Order of the White Eagle, the highest decoration awarded by the Polish State.
The meeting took place on the sidelines of the NATO summit being held these days in Ankara, the capital of Turkey. Zelensky stressed that the conversation with his Polish counterpart was "important and necessary" in light of recent bilateral friction. "We spoke for more than an hour," the Ukrainian president detailed.
In his message, disseminated on social networks along with several photographs of the meeting with Nawrocki, Zelensky insisted that "the threat we have is one and common: Russia. And it is very important to maintain mutual understanding, support, and act together. Our countries only need strong relations. We agreed to continue the dialogue."
The head of the Polish State expressed himself in the same vein, emphasizing that, despite "complex and still unresolved historical issues," he considers it essential that Kyiv and Warsaw continue to bet on cooperation and dialogue in the face of the shared challenge represented by Moscow.
"What has undoubtedly not changed is that Russia remains the main threat to both Ukraine and Poland. Regarding threats to our independence, we look in the same direction; that has not changed," Nawrocki stated.
The Polish president specified, however, that Wednesday's meeting in the Turkish capital was not intended to settle those "historical problems" that have returned to the forefront after a Ukrainian military unit was named 'Heroes of the UPA', in reference to an armed formation to which massacres during World War II are attributed in Poland.
Nawrocki admitted that for the Ukrainian side "matters related to the UPA and its symbols are non-negotiable," just as for Polish society "the emotions" linked to the "genocide" perpetrated by that ultranationalist militia in Polish territories occupied by Nazi Germany are.
In this context, the Polish leader has indicated that, being aware that it is a matter "so important" for Poland, he hopes that Ukraine understands that the exaltation of certain figures limits its prospects of accession to the European Union and carries "many negative connotations," in allusion to the controversial figure of Stepan Bandera.
Although both leaders have reaffirmed their starting positions on the past, Nawrocki has agreed with Zelenski in valuing the meeting as a "constructive" meeting, as reported by the PAP news agency.