- Dear Mr. Ambassador, in connection with the actions and statements of the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy, which have been supported by all former presidents of Ukraine and the vast majority of the Ukrainian political class, I have decided to return two state decorations of Ukraine, with which I was honored for my work towards Ukraine's European integration - wrote Michał Kamiński in a letter addressed to the Ambassador of Ukraine, seen by 300POLITYKA.

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"I accepted these decorations as an expression of recognition for my many years of commitment to building a strategic partnership between Poland and Ukraine. I received them, among other things, for authoring the first-ever report in the history of the European Parliament concerning Ukraine's membership in the European Union. Over the years, I also participated in shaping the Eastern policy of the late President of the Republic of Poland, Lech Kaczyński, who consistently advocated for a free, independent, and European Ukraine.

Poland was an advocate for Ukraine in Europe when many European politicians approached Ukraine's aspirations with reservations. We supported Ukraine politically, diplomatically, and economically, consistently striving for its presence in Euro-Atlantic and European structures. For years, we consciously limited historical disputes, recognizing that the future of Polish-Ukrainian relations requires responsibility and goodwill. Unfortunately, today it is difficult to escape the impression that this goodwill has not been met with due reciprocity.

A particularly telling symbol of this state of affairs remains the long-standing difficulties associated with conducting exhumations of Polish victims of the Volhynian massacre, while exhumations of Wehrmacht soldiers were carried out on Ukrainian territory without significant administrative or political obstacles. It is difficult to find a more clear-cut example of a hierarchy of memory with which Poland cannot agree.

For over five years, Ukraine has been fighting against Russian aggression, the costs of which are largely borne by Polish and European taxpayers as well. Poland and Europe have shown Ukraine solidarity on an unprecedented scale. Hundreds of billions of euros in aid, military, political, and humanitarian support, and open borders were an expression of the conviction that Ukraine is fighting for values common to the entire democratic world.

All the more is my astonishment and disappointment that after years of such enormous support from Poland and the whole of Europe, Ukraine has still not managed to unequivocally condemn the perpetrators of the Volhynian massacre and the mass murders committed by the OUN and UPA against citizens of the Republic of Poland. It is difficult to understand why Ukraine continues to find national heroes in circles responsible for one of the most tragic chapters in the history of Polish-Ukrainian relations. It is even harder to understand why, in the 21st century, individuals associated with these crimes are presented as role models of patriotism for successive generations of Ukrainians.

Every nation has the right to shape its own historical memory and choose its own heroes. Poland will not impose its own vision of history on anyone. However, it is equally obvious that Poland has the right to evaluate these choices. If individuals responsible for mass crimes against civilians are made national heroes, Poland has not only the right but also the obligation to react. The choice of heroes is always a choice of values.

I accepted these decorations as an expression of common values that were to form the foundation of relations between Poland and Ukraine. Today, I cannot keep them, as the highest authorities of Ukraine and a significant part of its political elites have still not managed to unequivocally condemn the perpetrators of the Volhynian massacre and the mass murders committed against citizens of the Republic of Poland.

Therefore, I am returning the decorations awarded to me, asking for them to be passed on to the appropriate Ukrainian authorities.

I make this decision with deep regret, but also with the conviction that true partnership between nations can only be built on the foundation of truth, respect for victims, and mutual honesty."