Ukrainian historic commander reburied near Kyiv decades after original burial
Ukraine prepares to repatriate remains of OUN founder Yevhen Konovalets from Rotterdam (photo: t.me/vereshchuk_iryna)
Ukraine has received permission to rebury the remains of the founder of the OUN, Yevhen Konovalets, from the Netherlands, according to a statement from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
“We have already started working so that Yevhen Konovalets returns home, as many other such Ukrainians,” the president said during the reburial ceremony of OUN leader Andrii Melnyk together with his wife.
“I am grateful to everyone who worked to ensure that such returns of Ukraine’s great figures take place and that the Ukrainian people receive their Pantheon of Heroes. Back in 2019, we began this discussion with Ruslan Stefanchuk about the return of Ukrainian heroes and the creation of a Pantheon,” Zelensky added.
The information about Konovalets’ reburial was also confirmed by Deputy Head of the Presidential Office Iryna Vereshchuk, quoted by Interfax-Ukraine.
Vereshchuk announced the upcoming reburial immediately after the ceremony of returning the remains of OUN leader Andrii Melnyk and his wife Sofiia Fedak-Melnyk to the National Military Memorial Cemetery (NMMC).
“The next will be Yevhen Konovalets; he is buried in Rotterdam. We already have permission, we are preparing and will carry out the reburial ceremony soon,” she said.
Konovalets is buried at the Crooswijk cemetery in Rotterdam (Netherlands). He was a colonel of the Army of the Ukrainian People’s Republic, commander of the Sich Riflemen, and the first head of the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists.
Vereshchuk also clarified that the reburial program is not limited to figures of the 20th century. It also includes personalities from the Kyivan Rus and Cossack eras.
Decisions regarding each specific figure will be made separately by a resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers.
A list of more than one hundred names is already being worked on
Head of the Ukrainian Institute of National Memory Oleksandr Alfyorov said that more than one hundred prominent figures are currently being considered.
At the same time, questions about a possible reburial of Stepan Bandera were left unanswered by officials.
What will happen to the National Pantheon
When asked whether those reburied at the NMMC could later be transferred to the National Pantheon, Vereshchuk said that the relevant law must first be adopted.
It will define who can be buried in the Pantheon and under what conditions.
At the end of March, Head of the Presidential Office Kyrylo Budanov said that he would soon submit proposals to the president regarding the creation of a Pantheon of Outstanding Ukrainians, including people currently buried abroad.
Recall that on May 25, the reburial of Andrii Melnyk and his wife took place at the NMMC. RBC-Ukraine reported that this was the first step in returning Ukrainian independence fighters buried abroad to their homeland.
In October 2025, the Verkhovna Rada adopted a bill regulating the procedure for reburial of military personnel, establishing unified rules for the process and securing state funding.
