— We have support from the Polish authorities for Ukraine's membership in the EU and NATO. He is one of our greatest advocates, said Andriy Sybiha in an interview published on Tuesday.
When asked specifically about the opinion of Polish President Karol Nawrocki on this subject, he replied: “I have no grounds to say” that he does not support such a position. — I also believe that Ukraine's membership in the EU is in the interest of Poles and Poland is aware of this fact, said the head of Ukrainian diplomacy in an interview published on Tuesday.
What does Minister Sybiha think about Ukraine's membership in the EU?
What progress has been made on exhumations?
What is the importance of historical issues in the relations between Poland and Ukraine?
When will Ukraine be ready to join the EU?
— The entire philosophy of the European Union is based on compromises. The countries that can submit their requirements have also been through this process and know that ultimately their accession was beneficial both for them and for the old EU members. Therefore, I am optimistic that compromise solutions will be found, emphasized Sybiha.
According to the minister, there is often an opinion among Ukrainian society and experts that even without Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, there will always be another country that will try to block Ukraine's accession to the EU. Sybiha stressed that the risk exists and some partners openly tell Kiev about it.
— Our negotiations will certainly not be easy. Some partners tell us this directly – they will be linked to their internal political processes, he noted.
The topic of exhumation. “There are no obstacles”
Sybiha emphasized that Ukraine has recently achieved significant progress with Poland on historical issues.
The head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, supported the unrestricted exhumation of the remains of “Polish victims of wars and conflicts on the territory of Ukraine.” He added that in practice this decision is already being implemented and permits are being issued by both parties. — There cannot be, there should not be and there will be no obstacles to exhumation. Because all victims deserve respect and remembrance, he emphasized.
Answering the question whether historical issues may lose importance in relations with Warsaw, Sybiha explained that progress is already visible. In his opinion, sincere dialogue and readiness to listen to the other side's needs remain crucial.
A topic that has divided Poland and Ukraine for years
Poland and Ukraine have been divided for many years by the memory of the role of the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists and the Ukrainian Insurgent Army, which in 1943-1945 committed the genocidal ethnic cleansing of nearly 100,000 people. Polish men, women and children. Since the spring of 2017, there has been a dispute over the ban on the search and exhumation of the remains of Polish victims of wars and conflicts on the territory of Ukraine, introduced by the Ukrainian Institute of National Remembrance. The ban was issued after the dismantling of the UPA monument in Hruszowice in April 2017.
The decision to abolish it was announced at the end of November 2024 during a press conference of the heads of diplomacy of Poland and Ukraine, Radosław Sikorski and Andriy Sybiha.
During a meeting with Nawrocki in Warsaw at the end of December, Zelensky declared his readiness to accelerate the exhumation in Volhynia. The Polish president said earlier that this was a key issue for him. On Sunday, the President of Ukraine declared that his country would be fully technically ready in 2027 to become an EU member.
