Lviv Regional Council declares 2027 the year of the UPA, Shukhevych and Olzhych

The Lviv Regional Council has declared 2027 the year of the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA), its commander Roman Shukhevych, and the poet and activist of the Organisation of Ukrainian Nationalists (OUN) Oleh Olzhych. The decision was taken at a plenary session on Tuesday 20 October 2026. The council's official website reported this.

What the council decided

The resolution covers three elements of Ukrainian historical memory: the UPA itself, Shukhevych, who headed the formation, and Olzhych. During the debate, the head of the culture committee and deputy Sviatoslav Sheremeta spoke. According to the council's statement, he said: "This is our history, our heroes, and we should properly honour their memory."

Historical background

In July 1943, UPA units carried out coordinated attacks on around 150 settlements inhabited by Poles in Volhynia. The perpetrators are considered to be members of the OUN associated with the faction of Stepan Bandera and the UPA subordinate to it. Poland recognises these crimes as genocide.

In Ukrainian historical memory, by contrast, the OUN and UPA are often presented as organisations that fought for Ukraine's independence and resisted the Soviet Union after the war. Differences in the assessment of these events have affected relations between the two states for years.

The IPN's reaction

The Polish Institute of National Remembrance responded to the resolution. In a post on X, it said that declaring 2027 the year of Shukhevych was "a blow aimed at the memory of the victims" of the genocide carried out on his orders. The IPN called the UPA commander the "architect" of the crimes in Volhynia. It also recalled his part in the cooperation of Ukrainian nationalists with the Germans, including service in the Nachtigall battalion. In the institute's view, the decision is part of the long-term building of an official cult of Shukhevych and of representatives of radical Ukrainian nationalism.

Zelensky's words on relations with Poland

The councillors' decision came a few days after a statement by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. On Saturday 17 October 2026 he thanked Poland and the Poles for their support. He stressed that both countries should strengthen cooperation in the face of the threat from Russia.

Answering journalists' questions via a WhatsApp group, Zelensky said that relations with Poland had indeed improved. He added that contentious issues should be resolved more calmly, and that cooperation should be based on mutual respect. He also spoke positively of Thursday's meeting with Prime Minister Donald Tusk in Brussels, held on the sidelines of the European Union summit.

The sources do not say whether the Polish government reacted to the Lviv council's resolution, or whether the government in Kyiv did.