European Parliament voices regret over Ukrainian unit's UPA naming
A resolution passed on 8 July 2026 brought a bilateral dispute between Warsaw and Kyiv before EU lawmakers.
What happens when a dispute over wartime memory moves from bilateral talks to the floor of the European Parliament? On 10 July 2026, that question hung over Ukraine's relations with Poland and the wider European Union, two days after MEPs passed a resolution on the matter.
The resolution, adopted on 8 July 2026, expressed regret over President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's decision to name a military unit after the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA). It cited the UPA's responsibility for the massacres of Poles in Volhynia and Eastern Galicia.
How the dispute began
The crisis dated back to May 2026. Zelenskyy had awarded the Ukrainian Special Operations Center North the honorary title "Heroes of the UPA", acting on the unit's own request. The decision caused outrage in Poland and led to a major crisis in bilateral relations.
The historical weight
The objections rest on events of 1943 to 1945. In that period the UPA, with the support of parts of the local Ukrainian population, carried out massacres of the Polish minority in Volhynia, Eastern Galicia, parts of Polesia and the Lublin region. The UPA's actions resulted in up to 100,000 Polish deaths.
The European Parliament's vote placed the argument in an EU setting, within the broader frame of Ukraine–European Union relations. The resolution itself was a statement of regret over the naming decision, and it was the point the dispute had reached by 10 July 2026.
