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Poland refuses to send 20-year-old buses to Ukrainian city under Russian strikes because of street name
Vinnytsia has withdrawn its request to transfer 15 old buses from its Polish sister city, Kielce, following a wave of hostility and contempt from local politicians and on social media. This followed the city's recent renaming of a street to Stepan Bandera Street, Kielce Mayor Agata Wojda announced.
Vinnytsia Mayor Serhii Morhunov rejected the request not because Vinnytsia's transport needs disappeared amid the war, but to prevent the aid from becoming a political issue.
Russia actively uses the image of Stepan Bandera, the Ukrainian nationalist leader who led the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists (OUN) and the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA), in its propaganda, referring to Ukrainians as “Banderites” and portraying Ukrainian statehood as a continuation of Nazism.
At the same time, attitudes toward Bandera in Poland are also largely negative because of the events in Volhynia in 1943–1944. Historical interpretations of these mass killings differ: in Poland, they are often described as a genocide of the Polish population, with primary responsibility attributed to the UPA.
In Ukraine, many historians emphasize the more complex nature of the conflict, pointing to mutual violence between Ukrainians and Poles, as well as the role of the Nazi occupation authorities and Soviet structures. The Polish position plays into the Kremlin's hands amid Russia's war.
The buses, which are roughly 20 years old and being decommissioned by Kielce in any case, would otherwise have been sold for parts or scrapped, Wojda said.
Why Vinnytsia needed buses
Vinnytsia's municipal transport is primarily powered by trams and trolleybuses — both dependent on electricity. Russian strikes on Ukrainian electrical infrastructure since 2022 have caused recurring power outages across Ukrainian cities, during which Vinnytsia's tram-and-trolleybus network cannot operate, resulting in transport disruptions for residents.
Backup diesel buses, like the 15 Kielce was prepared to donate from its decommissioning fleet of 40 vehicles, would have provided the city with an alternative during electricity outages.
"Precisely in such situations, the decommissioned buses from Kielce were supposed to help," Wojda said.
Polish opposition
The donation was opposed by Kielce city council members, including Maciej Jakubczyk and Marcin Stempniewski of the Law and Justice party (PiS), per Polish media, including Slawa.
According to Jakubczyk, the timing of the transfer "was not appropriate," and the donation "would have worsened already strained Polish-Ukrainian relations."
Jakubczyk specifically cited the Stepan Bandera street renaming in Vinnytsia: "In Vinnytsia, one of the streets was renamed Stepan Bandera Street. And it is precisely on this street that one of the 15 buses from Kielce, which were to be transferred free of charge to the city, would drive."
A wave of hostile commentary followed on Polish social media, with "hundreds of posts full of insults, accusations, and aggression," in Wojda's description.
Kielce mayor's response
Wojda strongly defended the donation and criticized its opponents. She said Morhunov refused its request not "because the needs of his city suddenly disappeared," adding that the war continues to be a daily reality.
"He did this because he did not want the question of help to a city living under wartime conditions to become an instrument of political dispute and the cause of further divisions. It is a gesture that deserves respect," Wojda said of Morhunov's decision to withdraw.
She noted that Kielce buys new buses partly thanks to European funds from partner countries, implying that solidarity flows in multiple directions.
"This story is a test of our decency and solidarity. The solidarity that we ourselves have felt for many years," she said.
