Zelenskiy’s chief of staff renounces Polish medal amid WW2 dispute

KYIV, June 20 (Reuters) – President Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s chief of staff said on Saturday that “President Karol Nawrocki gave up the Polish state medal after Zelenskiy was stripped of Poland’s highest honor due to a historical dispute.”

Kyrylo Budanov’s move threatens to deepen a diplomatic rift between close strategic partners as Kiev rallies its allies to force Russia to end its war against Ukraine.

Zelenskiy revoked the Order of the White Eagle after renaming a military unit in honor of World War II-era Ukrainian rebels accused of massacring Poles, Nawrocki said Friday.

Budanov said that he gave up the Golden Officer Order of Merit of the Republic of Poland, which was given to him last year, in order to protest this move, which he described as a “gift” to Russia.

“Our nations have long-standing relationships and different chapters of history, both heroic and tragic,” he said on social media. “But this should be an opportunity for reflection, not crude political speculation.”

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha had previously called Nawrocki’s decision a “strategic mistake”, and Nawrocki’s opponent, Polish Prime Minister ‌Donald Tusk, called on both leaders to remain calm.

(Reporting by Dan Peleschuk. Editing by Mark Potter)