Zelenskyy stripped of highest Polish honour over WW2 name of army unit

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has returned Poland's highest state distinction, the Order of the White Eagle, after Polish President Karol Nawrocki revoked it on June 19, 2026. This action stemmed from a dispute over Zelenskyy's decision to name a Ukrainian military unit after the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA), a controversial World War II-era organization.

The UPA remains a deeply contentious issue between the two nations; while many Ukrainians revere the group for fighting for independence against Nazi Germany and Soviet forces, Poland accuses the UPA of carrying out mass killings of tens of thousands of Polish civilians during World War II. Poland officially recognized these events as genocide in 2016, making the unit's naming a highly sensitive matter for Warsaw.

In response to the revocation, President Zelenskyy returned the honor on June 20, 2026, conveying that Ukrainians believed the award was intended for their people and army. Despite President Nawrocki emphasizing that the decision does not diminish Poland's strategic support for Ukraine against Russia, Ukrainian officials criticized the move as a "strategic mistake" that could benefit Moscow by straining relations between the allies.