Zelenskyy to skip Ukraine recovery conference in Poland as WWII history row deepens with Warsaw

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will skip the Ukraine Recovery Conference in Poland this week, as a growing diplomatic dispute between Kyiv and Warsaw over World War II history threatens to overshadow efforts to discuss Ukraine’s post-war reconstruction.

The annual conference, beginning Thursday in Gdansk, is expected to bring together government officials, business leaders and international partners to mobilise support for rebuilding Ukraine after years of war. However, the event has been pushed into the background by an escalating row over historical memory between the two neighbouring allies.

Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko said on Tuesday that she would lead Kyiv’s delegation at the conference, confirming that Zelensky would not attend.

“I am leading Ukraine’s delegation and our overall work at the Ukraine Recovery Conference 2026,” Svyrydenko said in a social media post.

The diplomatic tensions intensified after Poland’s nationalist President Karol Nawrocki removed Zelenskyy from Warsaw’s highest state honour, the White Eagle Order, last week. The move followed criticism in Poland over Zelenskyy’s decision to name a Ukrainian military unit after the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA), a World War II-era nationalist organisation.

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The UPA is viewed differently in Ukraine and Poland. While many Ukrainians regard the group’s fighters as independence activists who resisted Soviet and Nazi rule, Poland accuses the organisation of responsibility for massacres of thousands of Poles in the Volyn region during the war.

Zelenskyy later symbolically returned the Polish honour, with former Ukrainian presidents Leonid Kuchma, Viktor Yushchenko and Petro Poroshenko also returning theirs in solidarity.

The Ukrainian leader accused Polish politicians of exploiting the dispute for domestic political gains and warned that anti-Ukrainian sentiment could be fuelled by the controversy.

Despite the latest tensions, Poland has remained one of Ukraine’s strongest supporters since Russia launched its full-scale invasion. Warsaw has hosted hundreds of thousands of Ukrainian refugees, served as a key transit hub for Western military assistance and backed Kyiv’s efforts internationally.

However, disagreements over World War II history have repeatedly complicated relations between the two countries.

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk attempted to ease tensions on Tuesday, saying he would not contribute to further escalation.

“I will not in any way lend a hand to stoking this tension,” Tusk told reporters, while calling for voices on both sides to avoid being driven by emotions and focus on the future.

The Ukraine Recovery Conference, previously hosted in Rome, Berlin and Lugano, has become an important platform for securing international investment and support for Ukraine’s reconstruction.

Poland had promoted its role as host as both an economic opportunity and a chance to strengthen its influence in future discussions on Ukraine’s recovery and eventual peace settlement.

The dispute has created an unusual strain between two countries that have largely stood together since Russia’s invasion, with both sides now facing pressure to prevent historical disagreements from damaging their strategic partnership.

With inputs from agencies