Ukrainian Ambassador to Poland Asserts Honoring Bandera is Wholly a Ukrainian Matter

In the wake of the bad blood between Ukraine and Poland due to events of World War Two, Ukraine's ambassador to Poland, Vasyl Bodnar, stated that no one has the right to dictate to Ukraine regarding who it should consider its heroes, and that historical disputes should not stand in the way of supporting Ukraine on its path to EU membership.

For Bodnar, there is no question about whether Ukraine will join the EU.

"Ukraine will be in the EU. But we need to decide, first and foremost for ourselves, whether we're moving forward with [Stepan] Bandera, or with the Ukrainian people, and what we want to achieve in the EU," the ambassador noted. 

Bandera was a Ukrainian revolutionary, freedom leader, who was assassinated by Moscow in 1959.

In Bodnar's view, Ukraine has not yet completed its internal discourse to determine which historical figures were truly heroes and which were criminals, and what role the fighters for Ukraine's independence should occupy in the country's own history.

“In reality, the recent flare-up wasn’t about the UPA (Ukrainian Insurgent Army, which fought against all invaders of Ukraine, including Russia, Nazi Germany, Poland until after the war ended) as such, but about the decision – the right to make a sovereign decision. And that is what triggered the tensions we now have in our relationship. So first and foremost, I would continue the work we had already been doing.

“Honoring victims, exhuming burials on both sides of the border, and substantive, non-political work by historians that presents a real picture of society – including telling the Ukrainian public about the difficultchapters in our shared history, because the truth is that there were criminals in the UPA who killed Poles. But there were also a great many criminal acts committed by Poles and the Polish underground."

Meanwhile, the ambassador said, Ukraine needs support on its path to EU membership.

“We’re also going to need support for reconstruction. So we need to decide what matters most to us and focus on what will help the state survive today. If we want to enter into a historical discourse with Poland as equals right now, then let's first work with our own historians and our own historical institutions.

“Of course, no one has the right to dictate Ukraine’s internal discussion or the right to choose its own heroes. That is absolutely our right, and we will stand up for it as we see fit. But are you sure that Stepan Bandera is Ukraine's most important hero? He is one of them – one of those who deserve appropriate recognition. He was one of the leaders of the national liberation movement, and we need to talk about that. But we also need to talk about the side of this national liberation movement that had its dark sides."

As others have said, Ukraine and Poland have an enemy far greater and more dangerous than them — Russia. Moscow has demonstrated that it is prepared to invade and destroy neighboring countries. So it is wiser to keep your eyes on the ball.