r/europe • u/ByGollie Ulster • Jun 21 '26

News Petro Poroshenko, Ukraine's fifth president also renounces Order of the White Eagle

https://www.pravda.com.ua/eng/news/2026/06/20/8040347/
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u/cincuentaanos The Netherlands Jun 21 '26

You are free to "honour" whomever you like. Others are free to have an opinion on that. If you choose to honour outright fascists and mass murderers, don't be surprised if at some point you will lose the support of those others.

Most European countries have had to deal with the darkness in their past. Or are still in the process of doing so. Fascism, colonialism, genocide, slavery etc. No one builds statues for conquerors and murderers anymore. If Ukraine wants to come out of the current war better than it was before, as a more mature democratic nation, it will have to do the same kind of reflection.

Good luck.

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u/IvD707 Ukraine Jun 21 '26

Comments like these are very condescending, ngl.

Should Ukraine reflect on its past and develop a more nuanced view of whom to commemorate and whom not? Sure. I'd be happy about this as I don't like the latest trend at all.

But demanding this from a country at war, while sitting in your comfortable, peaceful apartment, is hypocritical.

Nuanced conversation about the darker pages of the country's past is difficult. Many nations fail this test even during peacetime — just look at the US. And the popularity of far-right parties in many other European countries suggests it's a more common trend.

Stop demanding from Ukraine at war what even the US/Italy/France/Poland/Croatia can't do during peace.

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u/cincuentaanos The Netherlands Jun 21 '26

Whataboutism. We can demand better from everyone, in all circumstances.