On Monday, the heads of the Polish state took part in official state ceremonies of the National Day of Remembrance for the Victims of Genocide committed in 1943 by Ukrainian nationalists on citizens of the Second Polish Republic. (On July 11-12, 1943, the 'Bloody Sunday' massacre occurred in Volhynia.) The ceremonies took place at Wołyński Square in Warsaw.
"The truth must be clearly and strongly expressed. It is not about revenge," - said President Andrzej Duda.
During his speech, Andrzej Duda emphasized that July 11 is an important, special, and historically difficult date for our nation. He thus referred to the so-called Bloody Sunday of 1943. - "We note with great pain and despair that life was taken by neighbors, often related. It was a fact. We remember it, and we will continue to do so because it is part of our complicated history," - he noted.
Later in his speech, the president talked about Polish-Ukrainian relations.
"The extremely difficult debate between our nations has been going on for decades. This is a difficult topic, extremely painful for us, demanding a tough stance for the truth, and for Ukrainians - difficult, because it is, above all, embarrassing. The truth must be clearly and strongly expressed. It was not and is not about revenge, about no retaliation, there is no better proof of that than the time we have now. What is happening between Poles and Ukrainians is the best proof of it. Where so many times had a rifle, an ax, a pitchfork, a knotty stick lay, bread was laid, and a hand was stretched out to help. And it was received with gratitude and tears" - he said.
President Duda announced that his Ukrainian counterpart, Volodymyr Zelensky, submitted a draft law to the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine on granting Poles in Ukraine a special status.
According to earlier media reports, the new regulations are to grant Poles the status of a model of the regulations Poland adopted in May this year concerning Ukrainians. It is, among others, about facilitating employment and assigning the equivalent of the Social Security number in Ukraine.