Polish president's office explains revoking Zelensky's award while Mussolini's, Schroeder's stands

A top Polish presidential aide on June 21 explained why fascist dictator Benito Mussolini or Kremlin-friendly former German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder were not stripped of Poland's highest state award, while President Volodymyr Zelensky was.

Historical figures like Mussolini or Russian Empress Catherine II are long dead, and Poland does not revoke the Order of the White Eagle posthumously, said Agnieszka Jedrzak, undersecretary of state at Polish President Karol Nawrocki's office.

"The former German chancellor, on the other hand, has never insulted the Polish nation as overtly as the Ukrainian president did," the Polish official said, nevertheless adding that Schroeder's ties to the Kremlin must be condemned.

Schroeder, Germany's chancellor from 1998 to 2005, held senior posts at Russian state-controlled energy companies, including Nord Stream AG and oil giant Rosneft, and met Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow earlier this month.

Jedrzak added that the Polish president withdrew the award, but not Poland's "helping hand."

"You don't honor murderers of the nation that's given you every form of assistance when it mattered," she added. "We support Ukraine, but we won't be insulted."

Nawrocki, Poland's conservative head of state, revoked Zelensky's award on June 19 after the Ukrainian president named a military unit after the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA), sparking a major diplomatic row between Kyiv and Warsaw.

The World War II-era UPA fought for Ukraine's independence but is remembered in Poland primarily for its role in the Volyn massacres, during which tens of thousands of Polish civilians were killed, with thousands of Ukrainians killed in Polish retaliatory attacks.

Zelensky, who received the award from then-Polish President Andrzej Duda in 2023, said he returned the medal to Warsaw via courier on June 20.

"Therefore, if it is considered that this special symbol can remain with Catherine II, Benito Mussolini, and Gerhard Schroeder, then we in Ukraine will not argue with this," he said.

According to Jedrzak, Zelensky's sending the medal by courier service "adds insult to injury."

In an interview with Ukrainian daily news program TSN, Zelensky linked Nawrocki's decision to Poland's domestic political struggles and drew comparisons to former Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban.

"We and the Poles cannot be anything other than partners or friends, because we are neighbors. And if you're not a partner, not a friend, then who are you?" Zelensky said.

"Over time — years, decades — all of this can transform into what we have with Russia. Disrespect, aggression, and radicalization of society. What Orban did was absolutely wrong. He deployed military forces to his border, moving them closer to ours."

The dispute is taking place a year before the Polish parliamentary elections, where Prime Minister Donald Tusk's centrist government is set to face a challenge from conservative and far-right parties.

Tusk called the Ukraine-Poland dispute a "strategic mistake," urging a de-escalation of tensions.