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On Saturday, Vasyl Bodnar, Ukraine's Ambassador to Poland, stated that the exact month of commencement remains uncertain, as it depends on weather conditions.
“We don’t know exactly which month, but we are preparing. If the weather permits, all necessary permits have been issued, and the Polish team is also ready to start the work,” the Ukrainian top diplomat told TVN24.
Under Ukrainian law, local specialists will accompany Polish researchers. The excavations are planned at a site where archaeologists discovered mass graves two years ago.
Poland and Ukraine begin search for Volhynia massacre victims
Currently, efforts are underway to finalize details regarding the exhumations and the collection of DNA samples from relatives, which could help identify the victims. This process is overseen by a Polish-Ukrainian intergovernmental team. Poland has submitted a total of 15 requests for exhumation permits, while Ukraine seeks to conduct similar research in Poland.
It is estimated that between 60,000 and 150,000 Poles were killed by the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA) between 1943 and 1945 in the former eastern territories of Poland. However, some Ukrainians dispute these figures, emphasizing that the UPA was an anti-Soviet rather than an anti-Polish organization.
In late November 2024, Poland and Ukraine announced the lifting of a moratorium, in place since 2017, on the search and exhumation of Polish victims of the Volhynia massacre. Ukraine confirmed there were no obstacles to conducting such work in accordance with its laws.
On January 10, 2025, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk announced that the first exhumations had been approved, and both countries exchanged lists of locations for searches related to historical conflicts.
Source: PAP/IAR/TVN24/X/@FaktyTVN
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