Poland-Ukraine Tensions Escalate Over WWII Hero Unit as Zelenskyy Strikes Russian Oil Refinery 2,000km Away

Warsaw/Kyiv/Moscow – A deepening dispute between Poland and Ukraine over the naming of a Ukrainian army unit after a controversial Second World War nationalist group threatens to divide the two allies, even as Ukrainian forces strike Russian oil refineries more than 2,000 kilometers from the front lines and Crimea faces its worst fuel crisis since 2014.

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk has cautioned that the conflict between politicians in Poland and Ukraine is a "strategic mistake that will harm both sides" as he seeks to defuse a rekindled dispute over events that occurred during the Second World War.

Polish President Karol Nawrocki on Friday stripped Volodymyr Zelenskyy of the country's top honour, prompting three former Ukrainian presidents and other senior officials to return their state awards to Poland. Nawrocki revoked the Order of the White Eagle after Zelenskyy angered many in Poland by renaming a Ukrainian army unit after the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA) – nationalists who massacred Poles during the Second World War.

Poland-Ukraine Dispute: 'A Strategic Mistake'

"Wading into a conflict between politicians in Poland and Ukraine is a strategic mistake that will harm both sides: business-wise, geopolitically, and reputationally. And in politics, as we know, a mistake is worse than a crime," Tusk wrote in a post on X.

The pro-European Tusk was elected prime minister in 2023 after leading a coalition that defeated the nationalist Law and Justice party, with which Nawrocki is aligned. The dispute has exposed deep divisions within Poland's political establishment over how to handle historical grievances while maintaining support for Ukraine's war effort.

Zelenskyy, in an interview posted on X, said Ukraine and Poland cannot be "anything but partners and friends," adding that a political struggle could end in a "very dangerous escalation."

"Our service members choose a heroic name for their unit themselves, and as president and supreme commander-in-chief, I must support them," he said. "Without Ukraine, no one will be able to defend Poland. It is simply impossible."

Ukraine Strikes Deep Inside Russia: 2,000km Range

Volodymyr Zelenskyy has confirmed that Ukrainian drones attacked an oil refinery in Russia's Tyumen region in western Siberia, more than 2,000 kilometers (1,200 miles) from Ukraine. He said Ukrainian company Fire Point had developed new long-range drones capable of travelling more than 3,000 kilometers and they had been "successfully deployed."

In his nightly video address, Zelenskyy thanked the Ukrainian military for special operations that "have reached Tyumen Region in Russia, including an oil refining facility. More than 2,000km from our state border. This is effective work."

Unverified videos posted online showed smoke and flame rising over what was said to be the burning Tyumen refinery, also known as the Antipinsky refinery. The Tyumen governor, Alexander Moor, claimed emergency services were working at the site of "fallen [drone] debris" – a phrasing often used by Russian officials to downplay successful Ukrainian attacks.

Zelenskyy described the attacks as part of Ukraine's "long-range sanctions" against Russia's energy infrastructure. "Russia understands only strength, and our long-range strength is certainly working for peace," he said.

Crimea Fuel Crisis: Worst Since 2014 Annexation

Officials in Russia-occupied Crimea have suspended civilian gasoline sales as Ukraine increases attacks on fuel supplies. The Kremlin-appointed head of Crimea said Ukrainian strikes killed four people and wounded 28 others overnight. He said local petrol stations will now only sell fuel to government agencies.

The Crimean peninsula has had periodic fuel shortages from Ukrainian strikes before, but the current crisis is the worst since its 2014 annexation. Social networks are filled with requests for fuel, and some speculators are selling gas at double the market price.

Ukraine's forces struck an oil terminal at Kerch in occupied Crimea over Saturday night, according to Ukrainian media and online accounts monitoring the war. Nasa satellite monitoring showed a fire at the Kerch seaport where the terminal is located. In what appeared to be a broader wave of strikes against Russian-held targets in Crimea, an electrical substation at Bilohorsk was reportedly on fire, and there were other attacks at Yevpatoria and the main city of Sevastopol.

Russian Attacks on Ukrainian Cities

Russian forces struck the south-eastern Ukrainian city of Zaporizhzhia with glide bombs on Saturday, killing five people and injuring 10, said Ivan Fedorov, the regional governor. Fedorov said there had been nine strikes in the city. He said residents could be trapped in the rubble of damaged buildings.

Russian attacks killed three people in Ukraine's Dnipropetrovsk and Poltava regions in eastern Ukraine, local authorities said on Sunday. A woman aged 70 was killed in Nikopol and nine were wounded in other districts of Dnipropetrovsk, said Oleksandr Ganzha, head of the regional military administration.

Vitali Dyakivnych, head of the Poltava regional military administration, said a Russian strike on Saturday evening killed two people and wounded 13, including six children.

Near the Russian border, a bomb attack killed one person on the outskirts of the city of Sumy, local officials said. In the southern Kherson region, the regional governor, Oleksandr Prokudin, said one person had died in a drone attack on a village north of the region's main city, also called Kherson.

Russian bombs struck an apartment building on Saturday in Kharkiv, Ukraine's second-largest city, killing at least one person and wounding nine including a six-year-old child, authorities said.

Fuel Crisis Worsens Across Russia

Ukraine has in recent months also stepped up drone attacks on energy facilities in Russia, striking targets deep behind the frontlines. Last week, it hit a large refinery in Moscow twice. Ukraine says the attacks are aimed at denting oil revenues that Russia uses to fund the war.

Some petrol stations in Russia, the world's third-biggest oil producer, introduced fuel rationing this month. Fuel exports have been banned since April. Energy Intelligence, a US-based energy research firm, said earlier this month that about a third of Russian oil refining capacity had gone offline because of Ukrainian strikes.

Zelenskyy's Warning: 'Without Ukraine, No One Can Defend Poland'

In his remarks on the Poland dispute, Zelenskyy warned: "Without Ukraine, no one will be able to defend Poland. It is simply impossible."

The Ukrainian president's comments reflect the deep security interdependence between the two nations, with Poland serving as a crucial logistical hub for Western military aid to Ukraine and Ukraine's forces bearing the brunt of Russia's military aggression.

For now, the dispute over historical memory threatens to strain a relationship that has been one of the most important pillars of Ukraine's wartime support. Whether Tusk's intervention can defuse the crisis remains to be seen.