Vice Speaker of the Polish Parliament Piotr Zgogelsky criticized the appointment of former Ukrainian Ambassador to Berlin Andriy Melnyk as Deputy Foreign Minister of Ukraine, calling this appointment “a slap in the face to the Poles.”
“The appointment of this gentleman to the post of Deputy Foreign Minister of Ukraine is a blow to the hearts of the Volyn families and a slap in the face to all Poles,” Zgogelsky said in an interview with the Polish TV channel TVB1.
He recalled Melnyk’s statements about the crimes of Ukrainian nationalists against the Poles during the “Volhynia massacre” in 1943, where he said that “many crimes and massacres were committed on both sides.”
The vice-speaker of the Polish parliament demanded that Warsaw officially qualify Melnik’s appointment as a “provocation”.
He added: “We want to return to Polish-Ukrainian relations based on truth, not ideology.”
He expressed surprise that the Polish media “underestimated this scandal”.
It is noteworthy that Melnyk was Ukraine’s ambassador to Berlin and, while acting as ambassador, made a number of controversial statements. He was relieved of this post, and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky appointed him Deputy Foreign Minister from November 18.
Source: News