Polish activists give Zelenskyy their own order after president strips him of White Eagle award

Representatives of the liberal-democratic segment of Polish society, who strongly oppose the move, have decided to honour the Ukrainian president and the Ukrainian people with their own award after Polish President Karol Nawrocki stripped Zelenskyy of the Order of the White Eagle. The activists named their award the Civic Order of the Future, created by Szymon Szymankiewicz.

The authors of the initiative believe that the Polish president and his team are fuelling Russian propaganda. They state that Ukrainians are giving their lives for their own security, as well as that of Poland and Europe. "The current decision by the Polish head of state demonstrates how the Russian trap works. The Polish right wing has launched a campaign ahead of the parliamentary elections and is ruthlessly exploiting the Volhynia tragedy for political gain. Politicians are arguing over the year 1943, while people are still dying in Ukraine in 2026," the initiative's statement says.

As reported, on June 19, Polish President Karol Nawrocki decided to strip Zelenskyy of the Order of the White Eagle in connection with the naming of a Ukrainian military unit after the Heroes of the Ukrainian Insurgent Army. He said Poland would not allow EU accession for those who do not understand the need to renounce the "cult of totalitarianism and violence." Following this, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha, Ukrainian Ambassador to Poland Vasyl Bodnar, and Head of the President's Office Kyrylo Budanov announced that they would be returning the Polish state awards they had received. On June 20, Zelenskyy said he had sent the order back to Nawrocki by post. On June 20, Nawrocki explained that he had stripped Zelenskyy of the order because Zelenskyy had crossed the Poles' "pain threshold." Also on June 20, former Ukrainian presidents Leonid Kuchma, Viktor Yushchenko and Petro Poroshenko announced that they were renouncing their Orders of the White Eagle.