Within the Working Visit to the Republic of Poland (Koszalin city), Volodymyr Lytvyn, Chairman of the Verkhovna
Rada of Ukraine, laid Flowers to the Cross and the Memorable Stone in honour of
the Wisla Operation
The memorial stone was laid near the Dormition Church of the Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Church in Koszalin in September 2007 on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of Operation Wisla.
Operation Wisla is a tragic page in the history of Ukrainian-Polish relations. It was conducted by the government of the People´s Republic of Poland in 1947 and envisaged deportation of Ukrainians from the territories of Lemkivshchyna, Osiannia, Pidliashia and Holmshchyna in the western and north-western territories of Poland.
In total, more than 150 thousand of Ukrainians were deported during the operation, nearly 4 thousand of Ukrainians were placed into concentration camps, 655 persons were killed, and 1500 members of the Ukrainian resistance movement were imprisoned.
On August 3, 1990, the Sejm of the Republic of Poland resolved to condemn Operation Wisla and recognized it as a crime against the Ukrainian people. On October 9, 1990, the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine appreciated this step and expressed gratitude on the part of the Ukrainian nation for such a declaration.
Polish President Aleksander Kwaśniewski was the first Polish high-ranking politician to publicly condemn this reprisal raid and express condolence to the victims.
V. Lytvyn visited the Dormition Church of the Greek-Catholic Church of Ukraine and met the senior priest Bohdan Halushka.