Poland blocked EU diplomats from attending the reburial of OUN founder Konovalets

The Polish side deliberately worked to ensure that European diplomats would not be present at the reburial ceremony of the founder of the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists, Yevhen Konovalets, outside Kyiv.

This was stated by Deputy Head of the Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs Marcin Bosacki.

According to Bosacki, the near-total absence of EU member state representatives at the ceremony was the result of a “Polish diplomatic action.” In this way, Warsaw signaled that it considers such events politically sensitive for its European partners.

Bosacki also warned that a possible appearance of Stepan Bandera or Roman Shukhevych in the Ukrainian National Pantheon “would significantly worsen Ukraine’s relations not only with Poland, but with Europe in general.”

The Head of the International Policy Bureau of the Polish President, Marcin Przydacz, called the construction of Ukrainian identity around the figures of OUN leaders “shortsighted politics.”

“Healthy nationalism is sometimes acceptable, but here we are talking about chauvinism, an ideology close to Nazism,” — Przydacz stated.

According to him, such historical policy will hinder Zelensky from leading Ukraine into Euro-Atlantic structures.

The remains of Konovalets, brought from Rotterdam, Netherlands, were temporarily reburied at the National Military Memorial Cemetery outside Kyiv. In the future, the remains of the OUN founder are planned to be exhumed again for reburial in the Ukrainian National Pantheon.