Polish President Lech Kaczynski has condemned Ukrainian President Victor Yuschenko's decision to confer the rank of a Hero of Ukraine to Stepan Bandera, the leader of the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists (OUN), and to give OUN-UPA soldiers the status of fighters for Ukraine's independence, reads a statement posted on the Web site of the Polish president.
"The assessment of the activity of the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists and the Ukrainian Insurgent Army in Poland is unambiguously negative. These organizations were involved in the mass killings of Poles in the eastern territories of the Second Rzeczpospolita [interwar Poland] when 100,000 people died. Poles were killed for being Poles. These crimes cause a protest in the Polish community," reads the statement.
Kaczynski expressed regret that Yuschenko’s decision indicated that "current political interests prevail over the historical truth."
"Moreover, Poland is firmly confident that effective and close partnership between sovereign, free and democratic Poland and Ukraine meets the interests of both countries," reads the statement.
"We cannot forget about that," Kaczynski said.
The Ukrainian president conferred the Hero of Ukraine rank to Bandera on Jan. 22.
