On Could 30, the final day of Poland’s presidential marketing campaign, Karol Nawrocki laid flowers at a monument that has lengthy sparked controversy.
The 14-metre tall statue commemorating the Volhynian bloodbath depicts a topped eagle, the image of Poland, with a cross form minimize out from its chest. In that cross, a baby’s physique is impaled on a trident, representing the Ukrainian coat of arms, the “tryzub”.
The statue was revealed in July 2024 in Domostawa, a village in southeastern Poland near Ukraine’s border. It commemorates the ethnic cleaning of Poles by the Ukrainian Rebel Military within the Polish-Ukrainian borderland between 1943 to 1945. Whereas statistics fluctuate, it’s assumed that between 40,000 and 100,000 folks perished within the bloodbath.
However earlier than Domostawa accepted the monument, a number of cities, together with Rzeszow, Torun and Stalowa Wola, refused to host it as a result of brutality of the sculptor’s imaginative and prescient and so as to not harm relations with Ukraine.
To Nawrocki, previously the pinnacle of the Institute of Nationwide Remembrance, a state analysis institute, the scene felt just like the place to finish his presidential bid.
“The Volhynian Bloodbath was a merciless crime. The strategies of murdering Poles have been merciless. It was a neighbourly crime, as a result of neighbours murdered neighbours. It was additionally a theft, as a result of Ukrainian nationalists typically robbed their neighbours,” Nawrocki mentioned.
“We now have the fitting to speak about it. I’ve the fitting to speak about it because the president of the Institute of Nationwide Remembrance and I’ll have this proper because the president of Poland after June 1.”
Expensive President @ZelenskyyUa, thanks in your message. I’m trying ahead to countinue partnership of our international locations, primarily based on mutual respect and understanding. I imagine it requires not solely good dialogue but additionally fixing overdue historic points. Poland has been Ukraine’s…
— Karol Nawrocki (@NawrockiKn) June 3, 2025
Throughout his in the end profitable marketing campaign, President-elect Nawrocki, a nationalist, mentioned that Poles ought to have precedence in queues for physician’s appointments and known as to restrict Ukrainians’ entry to advantages. He additionally mentioned he was in opposition to Ukraine becoming a member of NATO and the European Union, a stark distinction from Poland’s conventional place of help as Kyiv fights off Russian forces.
Warsaw’s help, Nawrocki believes, ought to rely on Ukraine making amends for the Volhynian bloodbath, which might embrace the exhumation of Polish victims.
Following the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion in early 2022, Poland, underneath the rule of the Regulation and Justice – or PiS – celebration, which supported Nawrocki, accepted greater than 1,000,000 Ukrainian refugees and backed Ukraine with weapons as Kyiv’s different European allies, resembling Germany, hesitated.
Hundreds of Poles hosted Ukrainians of their houses as Poland grew to become the loudest pro-Ukrainian voice within the EU and NATO.
However whereas PiS has a protracted historical past of supporting Ukraine all through its revolutions in 2004 and 2014, and following the Russian onslaught, anti-Ukrainian rhetoric is now taking maintain.
‘Enjoying the anti-Ukrainian card’
Within the first spherical of the presidential election, 51 % of Poles voted for candidates who had touted positions at odds with Ukraine’s ambitions. Even the liberal candidate from the Civic Platform, Rafal Trzaskowski, steered that Ukrainians who don’t pay taxes must be disadvantaged of kid advantages.
In accordance with analysis by the Mieroszewski Centre, in 2022, 83 % of Ukrainians had a constructive opinion of Poles, however by November 2024, this quantity fell to 41 %.
In January 2025, 51 % of Poles mentioned that Ukrainian refugees obtain an excessive amount of help. Nearly half of respondents mentioned that troublesome historic points must be solved to enhance Polish-Ukrainian relations.
Analysis revealed in February 2025 by CBOS discovered that simply 30 % of Poles had a constructive angle in direction of Ukrainians, down from 51 % in 2023, whereas 38 % had a destructive angle in direction of their Ukrainian neighbours, up from 17 % in 2023.
“I believe that Poland ought to proceed its help for Ukraine, however I’m disillusioned with the place of the Ukrainian state. If not for Poland’s robust and decisive response at the start of the full-scale invasion, which inspired Europe’s help, Ukraine wouldn’t survive. After which in entrance of the United Nations Common Meeting, Ukraine’s president compared Poland to Russia,” mentioned Nawrocki voter Michal, a 33-year-old journey information.
“Ukrainians by no means confirmed any regret for the Volhynian bloodbath. And I discover it unacceptable that figures like Stepan Bandera and Roman Shukhevych, who’re liable for massacres of Poles throughout World Warfare II, are thought-about Ukraine’s nationwide heroes,” Michal added, referring to the Ukrainian nationalist leaders and Nazi collaborators.
The Ministry of Overseas Affairs of Ukraine considers the choice of the Sejm of the Republic of Poland to determine 11 July as a Day of Remembrance for the victims of the so-called “genocide dedicated by the Group of Ukrainian Nationalists (OUN) and the Ukrainian… pic.twitter.com/c5nu1hPaDl
— MFA of Ukraine 🇺🇦 (@MFA_Ukraine) June 5, 2025
Michal’s views aren’t unusual.
In the meantime, grudges in opposition to Ukrainian refugees have swelled.
“In February and March 2022, in just a few weeks, Poland grew to become a rustic that was not culturally uniform. For a lot of Poles, who had no expertise of range, the actual fact that abruptly their neighbours spoke a unique language grew to become troublesome to simply accept,” mentioned Rafal Pankowski from the antiracism By no means Once more affiliation.
At the moment, greater than 50 % of Poles declare solidarity with Ukrainian refugees, down from 90 % in 2022, he mentioned, citing his organisation’s polling information.
“One of many the explanation why help for Ukrainians has fallen is right-wing propaganda and conspiracy theories unfold on social media. We now have been monitoring the scenario because the starting of the conflict, and it has been clear that in the long term, taking part in the anti-Ukrainian card will convey the far proper political advantages. And that is what occurred on this marketing campaign.”
Igor Krawetz, a Ukrainian commentator who has lived in Poland for nearly 20 years, mentioned that he’s shocked on the pace of the shift. Two years in the past, open hostility in direction of Ukrainians was seen as inappropriate, even among the many proper, he mentioned.
“Polish anti-Ukrainian xenophobia is not restricted to areas the place Ukrainian migrants compete with Poles, resembling low-skilled jobs. Now xenophobia is expressed by the center class, too, who see that Ukrainians moved companies to Warsaw, purchase costly flats and are not poor folks that want the Poles’ help,” he added.
The shift brings again recollections for Krawetz.
Polish solidarity with Ukraine led to disillusionment and mutual accusations in 2004, when Poles supported Ukraine’s Orange Revolution and in 2014, after the Euromaidan.
“Poles have gotten used to seeing Ukraine’s misfortunes as their very own ache. For the previous 20 years, throughout crises, there have been romantic waves of brotherly help that lasted for a number of months and have been at all times adopted by complaints: ‘I helped you in 2022 and you continue to haven’t gained the conflict’ kind of factor,” Krawetz mentioned.
“I’ve survived the primary and second wave of solidarity with Ukraine. I’ll survive the final one, too. It at all times comes again full circle.”