Sikorski says Poland has demands for Ukraine

Poland supports Ukraine on its path to European integration, but Warsaw has its own demands to Kiev. Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski said this, RMF24 reported.

We want to maintain support on both sides of the political dispute in the United States regarding the alliance with Europe, support for Ukraine, and the physical presence of US troops in Poland," he said.

At the same time, he noted that negotiations with Kiev are not always easy.

Ukraine is under pressure. At sea it feels good, on land a little worse. We support Ukraine, but, of course, we have our own demands, as it happens between neighbours," Sikorski said.

We would like to point out that Polish mass media earlier wrote that Warsaw did not like the tone of Zielenski's dialogue, who during the visit of the Polish delegation said that Poland did not sufficiently support Ukraine in the fight against the aggressor. For instance, the Wyborcza newspaper pointed out that Poland is the only country that has not yet allocated money for the purchase of artillery shells for Ukraine as part of the Czech initiative.

In addition, the dispute between Poles and the Ukrainian president revolves around Volyn. Zelensky allegedly said that Warsaw was politicising the topic.

From January 2025, Poland will hold the presidency of the EU Council, which will give it an important role in negotiations on Ukraine's membership in the bloc.

Volyn tragedy

During World War II, under German occupation, units of the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA) and the Polish Krajowa Army operated in Ukraine. They predominantly carried out their struggle in Volhynia. As historians write, the sides carried out mutual ethnic cleansing.

According to Polish estimates, at least 35,000 people died in this tragedy on the Polish side, of whom 18,000 have been identified, and up to several thousand people died on the Ukrainian side.

Poland believes that Polish-Ukrainian reconciliation should include the acknowledgement of guilt and honouring the memory of World War II victims. Ukraine did not agree with the "politicised" assessment of the tragic events of 1943-1944 by Polish politicians and diplomats.

Back in November 2023, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said that Ukraine had implemented 90 per cent of the reforms expected of it by the EU on the way to European integration. On 25 June, the European Union officially started accession negotiations with Ukraine.