Przemyśl suspends partnership with Lviv over Ukrainian Insurgent Army commemoration
Przemyśl’s municipal council unanimously suspended its partnership with Lviv, established in 1995, following the Lviv Oblast Council’s decision to designate 2027 as the year of the Ukrainian Insurgent Army, Roman Shukhevych and Oleh Olzhych. The suspension is not a permanent termination of relations and depends on the Lviv authorities’ response. Poland also imposed a Schengen entry ban on Lviv Oblast deputy Sviatoslav Sheremeta, while reports of a suspension of major military aid to Ukraine were denied by Poland’s Defence Ministry.
Key points
- Przemyśl councillors unanimously suspended cooperation with Lviv; 21 voted in favour and none against or abstained.
- The partnership dates back to 1995.
- The Lviv Oblast Council voted on 20 October to designate 2027 as the year of the Ukrainian Insurgent Army, Roman Shukhevych and Oleh Olzhych.
- Poland’s Lublin regional council unanimously agreed to terminate its 2004 cooperation agreement with the Lviv region.
- Poland imposed a Schengen entry ban on Lviv Oblast deputy Sviatoslav Sheremeta, the initiative’s originator.
- Poland’s Defence Ministry denied reports that a major military-aid package to Ukraine had been suspended.
- Cooperation could resume if the Lviv Oblast Council withdrew its decision and Lviv’s authorities clearly distanced themselves from initiatives glorifying structures responsible for crimes against civilians.
Why it matters
The suspension interrupts municipal relations that had lasted since 1995 and has prompted coordinated responses from several Polish municipalities and regional councils. It also adds to tensions in official Ukrainian-Polish relations, while measures against the initiative’s initiator have widened the dispute beyond local cooperation. Both Kyiv and Warsaw have called for restraint, and Polish authorities have denied reports that the confrontation led to a halt in major military assistance to Ukraine.
What happened
Przemyśl’s municipal council unanimously voted to suspend its partnership with Lviv following the Lviv Oblast Council’s 20 October decision to designate 2027 as the year of the Ukrainian Insurgent Army, Roman Shukhevych and Oleh Olzhych. Twenty-one councillors supported the resolution, with no votes against or abstentions. Councillors had initially proposed ending the partnership completely but settled on suspending it. The decision does not constitute a final severance, and future cooperation depends on Lviv’s authorities taking a clear position. Polish authorities said the Lviv Oblast Council must withdraw its decision and that Lviv’s authorities must distance themselves from initiatives glorifying structures responsible for crimes against civilians. The Lublin regional council separately and unanimously agreed to terminate its 2004 economic, trade, scientific-technical and cultural cooperation agreement with the Lviv region, while Wrocław and the Subcarpathian and Lesser Poland regional councils also condemned the decision. Sviatoslav Sheremeta, a Lviv Oblast deputy and the initiative’s originator, was added to Poland’s list of unwelcome persons and received a Schengen entry ban.
How Ukrainian sources describe it
Ukrainian reporting stresses that Lviv’s municipal authorities lack the power to reverse the oblast council’s decision and frames the dispute as harmful to Ukrainian-Polish relations. Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry said the deputies did not consult the central government and urged Poland to avoid abrupt steps. Ukrainian diplomatic assurances were also reported that the decision would not enter into force. Reports said that publications about the resolution were removed from the council’s social media accounts and official website, while the dispute focused attention on Sheremeta and the Polish restrictions imposed on him.
How international sources describe it
The Polish response centres on historical memory, mutual respect and the need to reject or withdraw the Lviv decision before cooperation can resume. Several local and regional institutions acted separately: Przemyśl suspended municipal cooperation, while the Lublin council approved the termination of a distinct regional agreement. Polish officials rejected reports that a major military-aid package to Ukraine had been suspended.
Where reporting differs
Ukrainian and European outlets differ in how they describe the duration of Sviatoslav Sheremeta’s Schengen entry ban: one describes it as a five-year ban, while another says it remains in force until 2031.
Background
Przemyśl and Lviv established their partnership in 1995. The Lviv Oblast Council voted on 20 October to designate 2027 as the year of the Ukrainian Insurgent Army, Roman Shukhevych and Oleh Olzhych, following an initiative by deputy Sviatoslav Sheremeta. Przemyśl councillors initially proposed fully ending the partnership before deciding to suspend it. Polish authorities subsequently set two conditions for restoring cooperation: the oblast council must withdraw its decision, and Lviv’s authorities must clearly distance themselves from initiatives glorifying structures responsible for crimes against civilians.