Duda hopes for breakthrough in historical issues with Ukraine
Andrzej Duda, President of Poland (Vitalii Nosach, RBC-Ukraine)
Ukraine and Poland should strive for a breakthrough on contentious historical issues. Attempts to resolve them through "blackmail" will not yield positive results, according to Polish President Andrzej Duda.
Duda said that during his visit to New York for the 79th session of the United Nations General Assembly, he had a brief meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. During this encounter, the two leaders exchanged a few words, and discussed the situation at the front, but did not touch on the topic of the Volyn Tragedy.
At the same time, he pointed out that these problematic historical issues had been raised multiple times in the past. As a result of previous conversations, the two leaders participated in an ecumenical service at the Cathedral in Lutsk, where they honored the victims of the Volyn Tragedy.
"I hope that by the end of my presidency, there will be some breakthrough on this issue. On the other hand, I would not want this to happen through blackmail, which, in my opinion, will not lead to good results," Duda explained.
Backstory
Recently, Poland’s Defense Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz said that Warsaw should not approve Ukraine’s membership in the European Union until the issue of the 1943 Volyn Tragedy is resolved. Later, Duda remarked that such blocking would align with the policies of dictator Vladimir Putin, but added that Kyiv and Warsaw must find consensus on complex issues, including historical ones.
On August 28, former Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said that delving into history would lead Ukrainians and Poles to accuse one another of various wrongdoings. Therefore, it is necessary to build a future together and leave history to historians. This statement sparked indignation from the head of the Polish government, Donald Tusk.
