Polish MEP Grzegorz Braun has used an axe to damage a memorial dedicated to members of the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA), reigniting a longstanding dispute between Poland and Ukraine over wartime atrocities and the commemoration of Ukrainian nationalist figures.
Footage posted by Braun on X shows him repeatedly striking the stone monument in eastern Poland, close to the Ukrainian border. The memorial commemorates 41 UPA fighters who were killed during a confrontation with Soviet forces in February 1946.
Braun argued that the monument should be dismantled, describing it as an insult to Polish victims of atrocities committed by Ukrainian nationalist forces during World War II. He claimed local residents had been reluctant to remove it themselves because they feared retaliation.
The UPA was the military wing associated with the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists (OUN), whose factions pursued Ukrainian independence during World War II and at various stages cooperated with Nazi Germany. UPA forces were responsible for mass killings of Polish civilians in Volhynia and Eastern Galicia during 1943-45. Poland officially regards those massacres as genocide, with Polish estimates placing the number of victims as high as 100,000.
The memorial itself has a disputed history. Polish records reportedly indicate that a Ukrainian commemorative structure was erected at the burial site without official permission during the 1990s, with the stone UPA monument subsequently added. The site has been damaged several times, including incidents earlier this year that prompted protests from the Ukrainian Embassy.
The episode comes amid renewed tensions between Warsaw and Kiev over Ukraine’s treatment of wartime nationalist leaders. Polish officials have increasingly demanded that Ukraine confront the historical legacy of the OUN and UPA, with some politicians linking the issue to Warsaw’s future support for Ukrainian membership of the European Union.
Braun is not alone among Polish politicians demanding a tougher approach. MEP Ewa Zajaczkowska-Hernik has criticised Poland’s multibillion-dollar military assistance to Ukraine while accusing Kiev of continuing to glorify nationalist figures associated with anti-Polish violence.
The historical dispute is unfolding alongside declining Polish public support for Ukrainians. Recent polling cited in Polish media indicates growing opposition to accepting Ukrainian migrants, representing a sharp reversal from the overwhelming public support recorded following Russia’s 2022 invasion.
Pomnik UPA w gminie Dołhobyczów w powiecie hrubieszowskim do likwidacji❗️
Obelisk obrażający pamięć ofiar ukraińskiego Ludobójstwa na Polakach powinien zostać usunięty profesjonalnymi narzędziami natychmiast po udokumentowaniu przestępstwa banderyzmu!#StopBanderyzacjiPolski… pic.twitter.com/8Q4QZ2z5vJ
— Grzegorz Braun (@GrzegorzBraun_) September 10, 2026
