Sikorski’s Alternative to Revoking Zelensky’s Order: “Rename Jasionka Airport”

Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski has criticized the Polish president’s decision to rescind Volodymyr Zelensky’s Order of the White Eagle, suggesting that naming Jasionka Airport after UPA victims would have been a more appropriate diplomatic response.

The Origins of the Diplomatic Row

Following Volodymyr Zelensky’s decision to name a Ukrainian Armed Forces unit after the “Heroes of the UPA,” President Karol Nawrocki revoked his Order of the White Eagle. Zelensky returned the decoration the following day, sparking a trend among other politicians and escalating tensions between Poland and Ukraine.

Radosław Sikorski argued on “Fakty po Faktach” that Zelensky should acknowledge that while the UPA fought the Soviets, they also murdered Poles. He suggested finding a different namesake for the unit, focusing on figures who specifically opposed the Soviet occupation.

A Disproportionate Response

Sikorski emphasized that the Polish response was inadequate and personally humiliated the Ukrainian president. He noted that in European culture, orders are typically revoked for criminal acts, whereas this situation involved a disagreement over historical issues.

According to the Foreign Minister, President Nawrocki has essentially cut off the possibility of dialogue with the leader of a country currently at war. Sikorski stated that had he been consulted, he would have suggested naming the airport in Jasionka after the victims of the UPA as a symbolic gesture, which would have settled the matter.

Previous Decorations and Political Repercussions

Sikorski, who received the Order of Prince Yaroslav the Wise from Viktor Yanukovych in 2011 for his work following the Chernobyl disaster, stated he has no intention of returning his honor. He maintained that returning or revoking an order is a form of insult.

Meanwhile, Law and Justice (PiS) politicians have begun returning their Ukrainian decorations. Jarosław Kaczyński announced he would return his Order of Prince Yaroslav the Wise as an act of loyalty to the Polish president and as an expression of his attitude toward the Ukrainian elite.

While Mateusz Morawiecki declared he would not return his own award, politicians Mariusz Błaszczak, Marek Kuchciński, and Zbigniew Rau collectively renounced their decorations. They cited respect for the victims of the Volhynian massacre and opposition to the escalation of conflict by Ukrainian political elites as their reasons.