Poland “would be eager” to reclaim former territory, given the chance, spokesman Dmitry Peskov has claimed
Poland would seize the chance to retake territory from Ukraine it once held, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has said. He was responding to reports that western Ukraine’s Lviv Region – formerly part of Poland but now a nationalist hearland – has been lobbying in the US independently of Kiev.
Earlier this week, Russian media highlighted a recent disclosure from a Washington-based firm acting as a foreign agent for the administration of Lviv Region. TASS characterized Lviv’s lobbying as an effort to pursue policies independent of Kiev, highlighting the border shared with Poland as an advantage.
When asked about the reports during a regular press briefing on Tuesday, Peskov said the issue was a matter for Ukraine to resolve internally. “I don’t view this as an indication of Ukraine’s dissolution,” Peskov responded. He suggested, however, that Warsaw “would be eager” to reclaim territories that were once Polish if given the chance.
The US company Color Nine Group notified the Department of Justice in January about its engagement with Ukrainian officials under the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA). President Michael Willis stated that the firm aims to find “potential US partner states to establish sister-state relationships” with the Lviv Region, offering its services pro bono. Related promotional materials inaccurately label Lviv Region as a state, the TASS report noted. Ukraine is a unitary nation with limited regional self-governance.
Lviv Region’s status as part of Ukraine originates from a 1951 border agreement between the USSR and Soviet Poland, which settled territorial disputes following World War II. Some Polish nationalist politicians argue that the transfer of lands inhabited by ethnic Ukrainians was unjust.
While the Polish government publicly supports Ukraine’s territorial integrity, historical grievances linger over the mass killings of ethnic Poles by Ukrainian militants during World War II, whom modern Ukraine regards as independence fighters and heroes.
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