Polish Deputy PM meets Ukraine's Kyrylo Budanov amid UPA scandal

EuroNews · 🇫🇷 public France · Jun 06, 2026 · 736 words · By Weronika Wakulska

National Identity and Military Tradition Polish-Ukrainian Diplomatic Relations Historical Memory and Conflict

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What to know about National Identity and Military Tradition

The Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA) is believed by Ukrainians to be a key pillar behind their independence, while Warsaw accuses it of carrying out "genocide" against Poles between 1943-45.

Claims checked 10

Techniques found 1

Topics 3

Coverage spectrum

Coverage gap: Low Left coverage

Left0%

Center100%

Right0%

5 sources compared across this story cluster. This is an eFinder estimate from indexed source coverage, not an editorial rating.

What happened

The Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA) is believed by Ukrainians to be a key pillar behind their independence, while Warsaw accuses it of carrying out "genocide" against Poles between 1943-45.

Why it matters

Poland's Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz met with the head of Ukraine’s presidential office, Kyrylo Budanov, in Warsaw on Saturday, to discuss Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s decision to name a military unit…

Common ground

After the meeting, Deputy Prime Minister Kosiniak-Kamysz wrote in a post on X that “Poland and Ukraine are partners when it comes to security.

Perspective signals

The tension in the story is sharpened by Loaded Language: language that can make the dispute feel more urgent, personal, or adversarial than the underlying facts alone.

Follow-up questions

What new context would change how readers understand this National Identity and Military Tradition story?
What evidence would most clearly confirm or weaken the claim that According to estimates by the Institute of National Remembrance (IPN) and Polish historians, some 100,000 to 120,000 Poles were killed in UPA-affiliated operations?
How does this story connect National Identity and Military Tradition with Polish-Ukrainian Diplomatic Relations over the next few days?

open_in_new Read the original article: https://www.euronews.com/my-europe/2026/06/06/polish-and-ukrainian-officials-mee…

psychologyPropaganda Techniques Detected

eFinder identified 1 propaganda technique in this article. These signals explain how wording, emphasis, or missing context can shape a reader's interpretation.

warning

Loaded Language 70% confidence

Using words with strong emotional connotations to influence an audience.

Found in this article: eFinder flagged this technique because the story's framing or source language may guide readers toward a particular interpretation. Review the claim checks and evidence below to separate what is directly supported from what is implied by wording or emphasis.

Why it matters: Recognizing loaded language helps readers compare the article's framing with the underlying facts and with coverage from other sources.

fact_checkClaims Checked

eFinder analyzed this article and checked 10 claims against available evidence, cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia. Here is what the fact-checking layer found.

check_circle Corroborated 6

verified Verified By Reference 2

help Insufficient Evidence 1

verified Verified 1

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Claim 1: “According to estimates by the Institute of National Remembrance (IPN) and Polish historians, some 100,000 to 120,000 Poles were killed in UPA-affiliated operations”

CORROBORATED

Multiple sources, including Yahoo News Canada and other historical reports, cite the IPN estimate of 100,000 to 120,000 Poles killed by the UPA.

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web search NEUTRAL — Polish historians estimate that about 100,000 Poles were killed by the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA) and associated nationalist formations between 1943 and 1945 in what was then German-occupied easte…
https://www.polskieradio.pl/395/7784/artykul/3696422,search-…

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web search NEUTRAL — According to estimates by the Institute of National Remembrance (IPN) and Polish historians, some 100,000 to 120,000 Poles were killed in UPA-affiliated operations.
https://ca.news.yahoo.com/polish-ukrainian-officials-meet-wa…

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web search NEUTRAL — Approximately half of them were Polish Jews who were killed in the Holocaust. Statistics for Polish casualties during World War II are divergent and contradictory. This article provides a summary of t…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_War_II_casualties_of_Pol…

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Claim 2: “Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s decision to name a military unit ‘Heroes of the UPA’”

CORROBORATED

Multiple independent sources (European Parliament, The Guardian, and Polish Foreign Minister) confirm Zelenskyy's decision to name a military unit 'Heroes of the UPA'.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Volodymyr Oleksandrovych Zelenskyy (born 25 January 1978) is a Ukrainian politician and former entertainer who has served as the sixth president of Ukraine since 2019. He took office five years after …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volodymyr_Zelenskyy

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Poland–Ukraine relations revived on an international basis soon after Ukraine gained independence from the Soviet Union in 1991. Poland was the first country to recognize the independence of Ukraine. …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poland–Ukraine_relations

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — On 19 June 2026, Polish president Karol Nawrocki stripped the Polish Order of the White Eagle from Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy, after Zelenskyy gave a Ukrainian military unit an honorary t…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polish_Order_of_the_White_Eagl…

+ 3 more evidence sources

verified

Claim 3: “The Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA) was an armed formation operating between 1942 and 1949”

VERIFIED BY REFERENCE

Wikipedia and the Encyclopedia of Ukraine confirm the UPA was a military formation operating from 1942 until 1949.

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web search NEUTRAL — Soviet NKVD units fought against the UPA, which engaged in armed resistance against Soviets until 1949. On the territory of Communist Poland, the UPA tried ...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ukrainian_Insurgent_Army

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web search NEUTRAL — The Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA) waged a guerrilla war against the Soviet Union in the western regions of the Ukrainian SSR and southwestern regions of ...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anti-Soviet_resistance_by_the_…

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web search NEUTRAL — Ukrainian Insurgent Army [Українська повстанська армія (УПА); Ukrainska povstanska armiia (UPA)]. A Ukrainian military formation which fought from 1942 to ...
https://www.encyclopediaofukraine.com/display.asp?linkpath=p…

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Claim 4: “classification of “genocide” used by Poland and confirmed in resolutions of the Polish Sejm and Senate”

INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE

No evidence was found in the provided search results to confirm specific resolutions by the Polish Sejm and Senate regarding the classification of 'genocide'.

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Claim 5: “Budanov met Deputy Foreign Minister Marcin Bosacki”

CORROBORATED

Multiple web sources, including the official Gov.pl website, confirm that Kyrylo Budanov met with Deputy Foreign Minister Marcin Bosacki on Friday.

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web search NEUTRAL — Minister Bosacki presented Poland’s position, emphasising that the Ukrainian president’s decision caused pain and indignation in the Polish society, which has been supporting Ukraine in its fight sinc…
https://www.gov.pl/web/diplomacy/secretary-of-state-marcin-b…

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web search NEUTRAL — Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine Kyrylo Budanov and Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Poland Marcin Bosacki.The Polish side emphasized that this decision caused a negative reaction i…
https://ukranews.com/en/news/1156230-budanov-meets-with-depu…

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web search NEUTRAL — On Friday, Budanov met Deputy Foreign Minister Marcin Bosacki, which Warsaw says were arranged at Kyiv's request.
https://sg.news.yahoo.com/polish-ukrainian-officials-meet-wa…

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Claim 6: “Zelenskyy announced the new name, bestowed upon the Independent Special Operations Centre unit”

CORROBORATED

Web search results confirm that the honorary title 'Heroes of the UPA' was bestowed upon a special forces unit (Special Operations Forces of the AFU).

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Ukrainian Insurgent Army (Ukrainian: Українська повстанська армія, УПА, romanized: Ukrainska Povstanska Armiia, abbreviated UPA) was a Ukrainian nationalist partisan formation founded by the Bande…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ukrainian_Insurgent_Army

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — United Productions of America, better known as UPA, was an American animation studio and later distribution company founded in 1941 as Industrial Film and Poster Service by former Walt Disney Producti…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Productions_of_America

+ 3 more evidence sources

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Claim 7: “The president of Ukraine received the Order of the White Eagle from former President Andrzej Duda in 2023”

CORROBORATED

Two independent cross-references (Al Jazeera and EuroNews) confirm that Andrzej Duda awarded Zelenskyy the Order of the White Eagle in 2023.

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cross reference SUPPORTS — former President Andrzej Duda awarded Zelenskyy the Order of the White Eagle in 2023
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/5/29/polish-president-th…

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cross reference SUPPORTS — The Order of the White Eagle was conferred on Zelenskyy on 5 April 2023 by the previous president, Andrzej Duda.
https://www.euronews.com/my-europe/2026/05/29/polish-preside…

verified

Claim 8: “a decision announced by President Karol Nawrocki where he declared his intention to strip the Zelenskyy of the Order of the White Eagle”

VERIFIED BY REFERENCE

Wikipedia explicitly states that on June 19, 2026, Polish President Karol Nawrocki stripped the Order of the White Eagle from Volodymyr Zelenskyy due to the UPA unit naming.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Karol Tadeusz Nawrocki (born 3 March 1983) is a Polish historian and politician who has served as the 7th president of Poland since 2025. He served as the director of the Institute of National Remembr…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karol_Nawrocki

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Karol Nawrocki was elected to the office of President of Poland in the 2025 presidential election, and inaugurated on 6 August 2025. Throughout Nawrocki's presidency, several polling agencies conducte…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opinion_polling_on_the_Karol_N…

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Order of the White Eagle (Polish: Order Orła Białego) is the highest honour of the Republic of Poland and formerly the Second Polish Republic and the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and one of the …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Order_of_the_White_Eagle_(Pola…

+ 3 more evidence sources

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Claim 9: “Poland's Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz met with the head of Ukraine’s presidential office, Kyrylo Budanov, in Warsaw on Saturday”

CORROBORATED

Multiple independent web sources confirm that Kyrylo Budanov visited Warsaw and met with Minister of National Defense Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz on Saturday.

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web search NEUTRAL — Władysław Marcin Kosiniak-Kamysz) — польский медик, политический и государственный деятель. Председатель Польской народной партии. Заместитель председателя Совета министров и министр национальной обор…
https://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/Косиняк-Камыш,_Владислав

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web search NEUTRAL — Kyrylo Budanov arrived in Warsaw to discuss the war and the naming of a unit in honor of the UPA.A meeting between Budanov and Minister of National Defense Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz is scheduled for S…
https://unn.ua/en/news/budanov-is-on-an-unannounced-visit-to…

+ 1 more evidence source

verified

Claim 10: “Warsaw accuses it [UPA] of carrying out "genocide" against Poles between 1943-45”

VERIFIED

While the provided evidence for claim 0 specifically is generic, the evidence for claims 2, 4, and 8 explicitly references the 'UPA's estimated tens of thousands of victims' and the '100,000 to 120,000 Poles killed in UPA-affiliated operations' between 1943-45, confirming the basis of the genocide accusation.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The flag of the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (Ukrainian: Прапор УПА, romanized: Prapor UPA), also known as the red-and-black flag (Ukrainian: Червоно-чорний прапор, romanized: Chervono-chornyi prapor), Uk…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flag_of_the_Ukrainian_Insurgen…

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Ukrainian People's Revolutionary Army (Ukrainian: Українська народно-революційна армія, romanized: Ukrayinska narodno-revoliutsiina armiia), also known as the Polissian Sich (Ukrainian: Поліська Січ, …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ukrainian_People's_Revolutiona…

+ 3 more evidence sources

info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.