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Ukraine nationalism threat to peace in Europe — Polish veteran

A polish veteran who studied manifestations of nationalism in Poland, Latvia and Ukraine believes that nationalism in Ukraine today is as dangerous as 75 years ago

WARSAW, March 17. /TASS/. Growth of nationalist sentiment in Ukraine poses a threat to peace in Europe and may bring war to the continent, a Polish veteran who formed part of a commission to investigate World War Two Nazi crimes told TASS.

"Nationalism in Ukraine today is as dangerous as 75 years ago," said Jacek Vilchur, who for many years studied manifestations of nationalism in Poland, Latvia and Ukraine.

"Europe and Poland adopt a blindfolded approach to the Ukrainian issue. They defend all Ukrainians, including nationalists. Because of this policy we are creating a threatening situation and cultivating Ukrainian nationalism," he said.

"Nationalism in Ukraine may lead to a conflict. Ukraine is overfilled with illegal weapons. The authorities are aware of this. They have the support of the United States. This problem poses a threat for peace in Europe," Vilchur said.

"Only those Poles who have lived through the [Second World] war in western Ukraine know the real truth about Ukrainian nationalism and its criminal nature," said the veteran, whose family was murdered by Ukrainian nationalists in the city of Lviv in the early days of the Nazi occupation.

According to the researcher, "Polish military archives dating back to the time of the Polish People’s Republic contain multiple documents on the history of the Second World War, which provide a description of nationalists’ crimes. However, no one uses them since there’s a kind of romance between Poland and Ukraine, which is very dangerous."