Lviv Regional Council’s resolution on UPA is damaging relations with Poland, - Foreign Ministry
The Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs has described the Lviv Regional Council’s decision to declare 2027 the Year of Roman Shukhevych, the Ukrainian Insurgent Army and Oleh Olzhych as counterproductive. The ministry stated that such an initiative hinders efforts to develop Ukrainian-Polish relations.
This has been reported by Censor.NET, citing a statement from the Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs provided to "European Truth".
The Ministry emphasised that the decision concerns sensitive historical issues which remain part of the bilateral agenda against the backdrop of Russia’s full-scale aggression.
"We believe that the recent decision by the Lviv Regional Council [...] is counterproductive to our ongoing efforts aimed at further developing Ukrainian-Polish relations," the Foreign Ministry stated.
The diplomats noted that the MPs had taken the decision at regional rather than national level. Before the vote, they had not sought advice from the Foreign Ministry or other central government bodies to assess the possible implications for relations with Poland.
The ministry also pointed out that members of regional councils hold elected office and are not subordinate to the Verkhovna Rada, the Cabinet of Ministers, the President or the central executive authorities.
"Political decisions taken by regional local authorities must not harm Ukraine’s national interests, particularly in the areas of security and European integration," the Foreign Ministry emphasised.
At the same time, Ukrainian diplomats called on the Polish side to refrain from taking any drastic measures that might hinder the normalisation of bilateral relations, and reaffirmed their readiness to resolve contentious issues constructively.
As a reminder, on 20 October, the Lviv Regional Council voted to designate 2027 as the Year of Roman Shukhevych, the UPA and Oleh Olzhych.
The decision drew criticism from the Polish authorities. Poland’s Foreign Minister, Radosław Sikorski, initiated the inclusion of Sviatoslav Sheremeta, a member of the Lviv Regional Council, on the list of undesirable persons, whilst the mayors of Kraków and Przemyśl announced the possible suspension of partnership relations with Lviv.
