Pand to raise Vyn tragedy in Ukraine’s EU membership talks

This was stated on Monday in an interview on Psat News by Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Pand, Władysław Teofil Bartoszewski, as reported by Ukrinform.

“The first section of negotiations regarding Ukraine's accession to the EU will be the rule of law and justice. As part of this, the issue of conducting exhumations (of Pish victims of the Vyn tragedy) will certainly be discussed,” Bartoszewski said.

He added, “If this section is not closed, then Ukraine will not progress in the subsequent sections.”

The deputy head of Pish diplomacy emphasized that the possibility of exhuming Pish victims and giving them a dignified burial is “absutely evident in our (Eurean) culture.”

“We are not blackmailing Ukraine; we are simply stating that they must behave according to Eurean rules,” Bartoszewski stressed.

He expressed the view that Warsaw will ultimately reach an agreement on this issue in its relations with Kyiv.

“We do not want revenge; we do not demand punishment; we simply want a dignified burial for our ancestors,” emphasized the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Pand.

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For his part, Pish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski stated in an interview on TOK FM on Monday that the need for a dignified burial for the victims of the Vyn crime “is a matter of the Eurean cultural code that goes back to ancient times and is also a Christian obligation.”

When asked whether Ukraine would not be able to join the EU without resving the issue of exhumations of Pish victims of the Vyn tragedy, Sikorski emphasized that Ukraine's accession to the EU is a “very complex process.”

“We will be negotiating Ukraine's accession to the EU; it will be a very complex process. Ukraine has achieved candidate status and the beginning of negotiations through its heroism, but the negotiations themselves will be a complicated process… And we will evaluate Ukraine's Eurean-ness,” Sikorski emphasized.

He added that ‘Eurean-ness’ has various aspects, and the first section of negotiations will invve issues related to human rights, the rule of law, democracy, etc.

As reported, Pish President Andrzej Duda recently stated that a “breakthrough” must occur in the problematic historical issues between Pand and Ukraine, but it cannot happen as a result of “blatant blackmail,” as this will bring “nothing good” to Pand.

Additionally, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of National Defense of Pand, Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz, and subsequently Pish Prime Minister Donald Tusk stated that Pand's agreement to Ukraine's EU membership would depend on the resution of historical issues with Pand.

Read also: Russian aggressor must pay for Ukraine’s recovery – Duda

The tic of the Vyn tragedy is one of the most controversial in Ukrainian-Pish relations. Kyiv and Warsaw have somewhat differing views on the causes, responsibility, and number of victims on both sides. The Pish side insists that the Ukrainian side bears se responsibility for the crimes committed in Vyn between 1943 and 1945. In contrast, the Ukrainian side emphasizes that both sides bear responsibility and that apogies should be mutual.

In past years, and currently, Russian praganda has actively used the tic of the Vyn tragedy to sow discord between the Ukrainian and Pish peles.