Polish President Karol Nawrocki recently declared that “Zelensky has proven that Ukraine is not ready to be part of the European family in terms of grappling with its own history, specifically, its glorification of thugs and murders from the ‘Ukrainian Insurgent Army’ (UPA)”. This followed Nawrocki revoking Poland’s highest honor, the Order of the White Eagle, from Zelensky for glorifying the Volhynia Genocide’s OUN-UPA culprits since this “crossed the pain threshold” of the “proud Polish nation”.
He also separately reaffirmed that “Ukraine’s entry into the EU constitutes a threat to Polish agriculture”, in connection with which he reminded Poles that he campaigned last year with the slogan “Polish farmer, Polish field, Polish bread on the Polish table.” Therefore, as long as Nawrocki remains President of Poland, Ukraine will never join the EU since he’ll do everything in his power to prevent that for reasons of historical memory and agricultural interests.
As a self-respecting leader who represents the patriotic half of the country, Nawrocki cannot accede to Ukraine joining the same bloc as Poland while it glorifies the Volhynia Genocide’s OUN-UPA culprits, nor can he sacrifice his country’s agricultural industry either with all that entails for Polish sovereignty. Ukraine could weaponize agricultural exports as leverage if it revives irredentist claims to southeastern Poland (“Zakerzonia”) after its conflict with Russia ends. Here are some background briefings:
* 10 November 2025: “Poland Might Impede The EU’s Push To Speedily Grant Ukraine Membership”
* 20 February 2026: “Ukraine’s Fast-Tracked EU Membership Would De Facto Advance EU Federalist Goals”
* 24 April 2026: “Examining The Franco-German Entente’s Push For Ukraine’s Symbolic EU Membership”
* 17 May 2026: “Poland Is Now The Last Country Standing In The Way Of A Federalized Europe”
* 18 May 2026: “’Project Trident’ Aims To Thwart A Post-Conflict Ukrainian Crime Wave In Poland”
Empowering Nawrocki in his quest to keep Ukraine out of the EU until these issues are resolved, namely through Ukraine reversing its transformation into an anti-Polish state and agreeing to permanent curbs on its agricultural exports to the bloc, is the ruling liberal coalition’s lack of a Sejm supermajority. He can therefore veto EU-related legislation without any fear of it being overturned, and if the conservatives form a coalition with the populists after fall 2027’s next elections, then this annoyance will disappear.
Everything is moving in the direction of those two forces coming to power by then since the ruling liberal coalition unforgettably discredited itself on the OUN-UPA issue and on the “poaching” of US troops from Germany just beforehand. As regards the first, it refused to rally behind Nawrocki despite reputable polling later revealing that a whopping 74% of Poles support him on this issue, while the second was another self-inflicted blow to their approval since slightly over half of Poles support US bases in Poland.
Both are very emotive for Poles, as is the defense of their agricultural industry, whether from Ukraine or any other competitor. The ruling liberal coalition’s approaches towards all three issues, the agricultural one relating to their continued support for Ukraine’s EU membership in spite of that scenario ruining the lives of Polish farmers, naturally reduce the chances of them retaining control over the Sejm. A lot can still happen before fall 2027, but as of now, a conservative-populist coalition looks set to replace them.
