Tusk also acknowledged the historical “ups and downs” that have occurred in relations between Kyiv and Warsaw. Responding to a question from a reporter about lingering bad blood from the World War II Volhynia massacre, in which a Ukrainian guerrilla group killed tens of thousands of Poles within an ethnic cleansing mission, Tusk said it would be a “terrible mistake, an unforgivable sin” to let “bad history and bad emotions” interfere with Polish-Ukrainian solidarity.
Tensions have continued to simmer between the two nations despite their anti-Russia alliance, with Tusk himself in August threatening that Poland would block Ukraine’s accession to the European Union — whose presidency Poland assumes in the new year — unless Ukraine meets the requisite “cultural and political standards.”
But the Polish leader has since changed his tune, confirming on Tuesday Warsaw’s commitment to accelerating Ukraine’s EU accession talks and saying Kyiv can count on Poland to support its NATO membership too.
For his part, Zelenskyy told reporters he was “pleased with the cooperation” between the ministries of culture of the two countries, and stated that “progress” is being made toward addressing historical tensions.
“We appreciate everything that Poland has done for Ukraine,” Zelenskyy said.
