Key facts
- Ukraine's parliament approved the creation of a national memorial called the Ukrainian National Pantheon.
- The bill was submitted by President Volodymyr Zelensky and requires his signature to become law.
- The pantheon will commemorate Ukrainian national leaders and heroes from various historical periods.
- The initiative has exacerbated existing tensions between Ukraine and Poland.
- Figures like Yevhen Konovalets, Mykhailo Omelyanovych-Pavlenko, and Vasyl Kuk are expected to be honored.
Ukraine's parliament has approved the creation of a memorial for national leaders and heroes, to be known as the Ukrainian National Pantheon. The bill, submitted by President Volodymyr Zelensky, aims to establish a central site for the final resting place of prominent Ukrainian figures. To become law, it requires the president's signature.
The initiative has become a point of contention in Ukraine's relationship with Poland. Poland has designated the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA) as responsible for the "genocide" of Poles in Volyn during World War II. Ukraine, however, views the Volyn massacres as a mutual tragedy and considers UPA members as fighters for Ukrainian independence.
Ruslan Stefanchuk, speaker of the Ukrainian parliament, described the pantheon as a "unique place of Ukrainian statehood." Expected figures to be commemorated include Yevhen Konovalets, former head of the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists (OUN); Mykhailo Omelyanovych-Pavlenko, a military commander of the Ukrainian People's Republic; and Vasyl Kuk, former head of the UPA. Former President Viktor Yushchenko has also proposed re-burying the remains of historical leaders such as Ivan Mazepa, Pylyp Orlyk, Symon Petliura, Pavlo Skoropadsky, and Stepan Bandera at the pantheon.
Recent events, including the re-burial of nationalist leader Andrii Melnyk in May and President Zelensky's decision to name a special forces unit after the UPA, have further strained Ukrainian-Polish relations. Historians estimate that between 60,000 and 90,000 Poles were killed in the Volyn massacres, with Ukrainian casualties estimated between 10,000 and 20,000.