The grave of the last Polish Consul General stationed in NZ before WWII. After the communist takeover of Poland in 1945 he could not return as all members of the pre-WWII government service would have been arrested and sent to Soviet gulags.

by Eva Churchman

During the week I was invited to lunch at the Polish ambassador’s residence following commemorations at Karori and Makara cemeteries for those who had served in the Polish military during WWII and died while living in NZ. My father was born in Lwow, a Polish city that was made part of Ukraine in 1939 by Stalin, and fought with the Allies in Italy over 1943-45.

During lunch the subject of Ukraine came up and although the Polish ambassador himself said little, as he represents the Polish government, guests made clear their views and they were not favourable of either Biden or Zelensky. Overall they were largely the same views that have been expressed on Waikanae Watch about what led to the conflict, how it has been conducted and likely consequences.

The same neo-Nazi military formations that have behaved abominably towards Russians living in the eastern areas of Ukraine since 2014 have also been responsible for attacks on Poles in Ukraine. They are not nice people. Much of it goes back to WWII and the activities of Stepana Bandera, an extreme right Ukraine Nationalist leader who was involved in massacres of Poles, see this Wikipedia page. Insulting for my family was that the street my father lived on in Lwow was renamed after Stepan Bandera in 1991.

The impression given by the Mainstream Media that all Poles are enthusiastic supporters of Zelensky and Ukraine is not accurate.