European Parliament voices regret over Ukrainian military unit's UPA naming
A resolution passed on 8 July 2026 added a European dimension to a bilateral dispute between Poland and Ukraine over the Ukrainian Insurgent Army.
What did the European Parliament decide on the eve of 9 July 2026, and why did it matter for Kyiv? On 8 July it passed a resolution expressing regret over the decision of Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy to name a military unit after the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA). The resolution cited the UPA's responsibility for the massacres of Poles in Volhynia and Eastern Galicia.
The vote placed a dispute between Warsaw and Kyiv before the EU's own legislature. It was reported as part of the wider controversy in Ukraine–European Union relations, which also involved the Polish Order of the White Eagle.
How the dispute began
The row dated from May 2026. Zelenskyy had awarded the Ukrainian Special Operations Center North the honorary title "Heroes of the UPA", at that unit's request. The decision caused outrage in Poland and led to a major crisis in bilateral relations, a episode later described as the 2026 Poland–Ukraine diplomatic crisis.
The historical backdrop
The massacres cited in the resolution were carried out in German-occupied Poland by the UPA, with the support of parts of the local Ukrainian population. They targeted the Polish minority in Volhynia, Eastern Galicia, parts of Polesia and the Lublin region between 1943 and 1945, and caused up to 100,000 Polish deaths.
The resolution's wording focused on regret over the naming decision rather than on any wider measure. It gave the Polish objections formal backing in the European Parliament, nearly two months after the dispute began.
