“Polish Foreign Minister Radoslav Sikorskyi and President Volodymyr Zelenskyi had unpleasant negotiations regarding the exhumation of the victims of the Volyn tragedy in September; currently, the Poles expect to be able to pressure Ukraine during their six-month presidency of the EU in January 2025, Polish journalist Marcin Terlik reported, citing informed interlocutors.”, — write: www.pravda.com.ua
Source: “European Truth” with reference to Terlik’s article for Onet
Details: According to the journalist, the Polish delegation was surprised by President Volodymyr Zelenskyi’s communication style at the talks in Kyiv last week.
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He added that the position of Ukrainian politicians regarding the exhumation of the victims of the Volyn tragedy causes disappointment in Warsaw, so the Polish MFA is “planning specific measures.”
The journalist writes that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Poland “has an idea” how to put pressure on Kyiv using the future EU presidency for this purpose.
The interlocutor, who is familiar with the progress of the negotiations, noted that “Ukraine has taken a demanding position”: “We know that Zelensky is under enormous pressure, but it cannot be the case that concessions go only one way. Meanwhile, Ukraine has taken a demanding position. In the field of defense, we can understand it, but in other areas it must change.”
A representative of the Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said that the issue of Volyn is currently “the main and, in principle, the only demand” of the country.
Therefore, when in January 2025 Poland takes over the six-month presidency of the EU, the country’s Foreign Ministry allegedly plans to use Ukraine’s European integration aspirations as an instrument of pressure on Kyiv.
“Sikorskyi convinced Zelenskyi to settle historical issues with Poland now, as he would pay a lower price for them than during the accession negotiations. This did not reach Zelenskyi,” one of the informed interlocutors told the publication.
He noted that after the meeting of politicians, it became known that Ukraine “would like Poland to open all negotiation sections at the same time during its presidency”, which would be “unprecedented and very difficult”.
“Kyiv needs Warsaw’s commitment to accession. And this is where there is room for conversation. We will help them if they help us,” emphasized the journalist’s interlocutor at the Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
At the same time, the representative of Polish diplomacy emphasized that “military and defense issues will not be a bargaining chip” in negotiations with Ukraine.
As you know, at the beginning of September, the head of the Polish-Ukrainian Reconciliation Society, Karolina Romanowska, became one of the first people in Poland to submit a private request to President Volodymyr Zelenskyi regarding the exhumation of the victims of the Volyn tragedy.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Poland, Radosław Sikorski, believes that Warsaw does not make excessive demands on Kyiv in historical disputes, and that it is too early to “leave history to historians.”
Read also the full text of the interview: Radek Sikorskyi: “In Warsaw, a Ukrainian cuts my hair. Shouldn’t he instead protect Ukraine?”