Polish presidential candidate stages provocation in Lviv and threatens to ban Lviv mayor from Poland – photo, video

Sławomir Mentzen, an anti-Ukrainian presidential candidate from Poland’s Confederation (Konfederacja) party, has visited Lviv and recorded a provocative video which he posted on social media.

Source: Sławomir Mentzen and Andrii Sadovyi, Mayor of Lviv, on X (Twitter), as reported by European Pravda

Details: Mentzen visited Ukraine on the third anniversary of Russia's full-scale invasion. He was accompanied by Anna Bryłka, a Confederation party MEP who recently said Poland should have a "guarantee of repayment" from Ukraine for the aid received.

The Polish politicians recorded a video in front of the monument to Stepan Bandera, whom Mentzen described as "a terrorist who was sentenced to death by a Polish court for killing Poles during the Second Polish Republic". [Stepan Bandera was a Ukrainian nationalist leader and a key figure in the Organisation of Ukrainian Nationalists (OUN), advocating for Ukraine’s independence during the 20th century. His legacy remains highly controversial, as he is viewed as a hero by many Ukrainians for his fight against Soviet and Nazi occupation, while others criticize his movement’s tactics and associations – ed.]

Quote from Mentzen: "Then he founded the Organisation of Ukrainian Nationalists, which was responsible for the massacres in Volyn. This man's people killed 100,000 Poles." 

Details: Bryłka added that a monument to Bandera in Ukraine is like building monuments to Hitler in Germany.

Mentzen also visited the Eaglets Cemetery in Lviv, where he laid flowers. [The Lviv Eaglets were young Polish soldiers, many of them teenagers, who defended Lviv during the Polish-Ukrainian War (1918–1919) and later against the Bolsheviks in the Polish-Soviet war (1919-1920). They are buried in the Cemetery of the Defenders of Lviv, which honours those who fought for Poland in these conflicts – ed.]

Quote: "As President of the Republic of Poland, I will do everything I can to ensure that there will be no more Polish military cemeteries. I will not allow Polish soldiers to be sent to Ukraine!"

Details: The mayor of Lviv, Andrii Sadovyi, responded robustly to the Polish politicians’ actions, calling Mentzen a "pro-Russian politician with a Polish passport". Sadovyi tweeted that Mentzen should show courage and film a video next to the entrance sign to Donetsk.

Quote from Sadovyi: "He can go to the front line and share his thoughts there, especially with Polish volunteers. We need to check whether he is allowed to enter Ukraine at all."

Details: Mentzen responded to Sadovyi's tweet with another provocative statement on X.

Quote: "I am a Pole, and I went to the beautiful and cultural Polish city of Lviv, on which the Russians once inflicted a great deal of damage. I saw a monument to Bandera, the cult of Bandera's criminals led by Shukhevych. You should be ashamed that in such a wonderful city you consent to the cult of genocide perpetrators, criminals and murderers of my compatriots. You should be banned from entering Poland."

Details: Mentzen said that if he wins the election, he will "immediately deal" with the issue of banning Sadovyi from entering Poland.

Background:

• Earlier, it was reported that Mentzen’s approval rating had recently increased.
• However, Mentzen is not a leader in the presidential ratings. Rafał Trzaskowski and Karol Nawrocki are considered the frontrunners

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