Former Ukrainian presidents Leonid Kuchma, Viktor Yushchenko, and… (орден · украина · украинский)
Former Ukrainian presidents Leonid Kuchma, Viktor Yushchenko, and Petro Poroshenko have refused to accept the Polish Order of the White Eagle after President of Poland Karol Nawrocki stripped Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy of the award due to the naming of a Ukrainian military unit after the 'Ukrainian Insurgent Army' (UPA), an organization designated as extremist and banned in Russia.
Consensus
- Former Ukrainian presidents Leonid Kuchma, Viktor Yushchenko, and Petro Poroshenko returned their Polish White Eagle orders.
- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky was stripped of the Polish White Eagle order.
- The reason for stripping Zelensky was honoring the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA), a group designated as a terrorist organization in Russia.
- Dmitry Medvedev claimed the return of the orders showed the former presidents admitted to being Nazis.
- The Polish President, Karel Nawałka, initiated the stripping of Zelensky's order.
Points of divergence
- The former presidents also returned other honors, not just the Polish White Eagle order. — vm
- The former presidents were described as 'servile subjects' of a non-existent Ukraine. — vm
- The Polish government had already supported the initiative to strip Zelensky of his order by May 31. — vedomosti
- The Ukrainian president's office head, Kirill Budanov, also returned his Polish honor. — vedomosti
Coverage (2 sources)
- Medvedev: Former Ukrainian presidents, in return of Polish orders, recognized themselves as Nazis — Вечерняя Москва
- Medvedev: Former Ukrainian presidents承认 themselves as Nazis by returning orders — Ведомости