I don't know what his motive was

Magdalena Rigamonti, Tomasz Sekielski: Polish-Ukrainian relations are collapsing.

Ruslana: Due to lack of diplomacy.

Due to the fact that President Zelensky named the military unit after the Heroes of the UPA.

I am very critical of politicians and politics.

After all, you have been involved in politics since at least 2004, since the Orange Revolution, since you won Eurovision.

But I am a very independent person and I believe that an artist or musician should be independent from politics, he should always have his own opinion, even if this opinion does not coincide with the political position inside Ukraine. I repeat that we in Ukraine lack diplomacy, real national diplomacy. The effect of this is that we take different steps and we cannot predict the consequences, we do not understand these consequences. Perhaps Ukrainian politicians are making decisions with a view to future elections and to stay high in the polls.

UPA divides Poles and Ukrainians. “This is not the right time”

You were born in western Ukraine, in Lviv.

And that's where I grew up. There is a monument to Adam Mickiewicz in my city. From my perspective, Lviv has always united, not divided, Ukrainians and Poles. And that's why I always treat our relationships with care. And I'm always looking for those moments that connect us.

The attitude towards the UPA divides us.

And from my perspective, it looks like this is not the right time to go back to this story, because we haven't fully explained it. Many things are simply unfinished. I would prefer for it to stay aside and for us to focus on what is happening now, on our common enemy, on what we are definitely in together. It is worth looking for culture, art, social projects, and not for issues that cause conflicts between Poles and Ukrainians.

Do you think that President Zelensky did wrong by glorifying the Ukrainian Insurgent Army?

If it really moves the emotions of Poles who do so much for us, then… it is not diplomatic. I don't know what Zelensky's motives were in this situation. But if politicians do not understand the consequences of their decisions… their consequences may affect Poland's aid to Ukraine and support for Ukraine. This is simply not constructive.

You have been fighting for years for Ukraine to be part of the European Union.

I was on Maidan in 2014 until the end. Since then, my country has been fighting constantly. And we don't want lies, corruption or lack of professionalism. Ukraine is Europe, it has always been part of European culture. And this is a historical fact. Russia wanted to starve Ukraine, wanted to destroy it, occupied us until the early 1990s. Russia is barbarians, it has nothing to do with what Europe breathes. It has nothing to do with freedom or independence. We, Ukrainians, want to decide our own fate. We want to live without Russia, without occupation, without war. I hope politicians' mistakes won't matter in the end.