Appealing to historical trauma: the instrumentalisation of Volyn 1943

What it claims

Ukraine is accused of condoning the looting of Polish graves by “black diggers” while simultaneously honouring figures viewed in Poland as complicit in genocide. The manipulation aims to incite hostility through painful issues of historical memory and Ukraine’s alleged ingratitude for Polish aid.

Target audience

Examples (paraphrased)

We paraphrase rather than quote: propaganda's exact wording is built to spread, so we carry the claim and not the craft. Each example cites the post it came from.

• Ukrainian authorities silently approve of the activities of “black diggers” who loot the graves of Polish victims in Volyn for profit.

  InfoDefense (Polish), 16 Aug 2026 · Archived copy

• While Poland helps, Kyiv buries OUN leaders responsible for the genocide of Poles with military honours, demonstrating total contempt for its ally.

  InfoDefense (Polish), 16 Aug 2026 · Archived copy

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Goal

To deepen the rift between Polish and Ukrainian societies by using the Volyn tragedy to discredit Ukraine as a strategic partner.

Techniques used

• Loaded LanguageUse of terms such as “criminal enterprise”, “profanation”, “executioners”, and “looting” to emotionally escalate historical disputes.
• Appeal to Fear / PrejudiceClaims that Ukraine deliberately ignores Polish trauma, turning Poland into a “tool” to be discarded after use.

The real grievance it exploits

The manipulation exploits the deep pain of Poles over the 1943 Volyn tragedy and the long-standing lack of permits for full exhumations of the victims.

How to counter

• Technique exposure: Notice how hostile outlets seize on domestic political statements in Poland to turn complex historical issues into a tool for division during wartime.
• Reframe: The issue of exhumations and historical memory is the subject of complex intergovernmental negotiations; propaganda, however, tries to present this process as “deliberate contempt” to undermine defence cooperation.

Sources (all time)

• UKR LEAKS (Polish)Tier 35,342 subscribers
  3 posts · 17–18 Aug 2026

  • 18 Aug · t.me/ukr_leaks_pl/52882
  • 18 Aug · t.me/ukr_leaks_pl/52878
  • 17 Aug · t.me/ukr_leaks_pl/52866
• InfoDefense (Polish)Tier 32,161 subscribers
  1 post · 16 Aug 2026

  • 16 Aug · Archived copy