THE PROPAGANDA RAID OF THE UKRAINIAN INSURGENT ARMY (UPA) INTO SLOVAKIA IN 1945

Abstract

The article studies the propaganda raid of the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA) into Slovakia in 1945, led by Dmytro-Yaroslav Vitovsky. The author states that the objective of the raid of the units of Ukrainian military underground was to inform the international community about the Ukrainian liberation struggle and to attempt to establish cooperation with anti-communist Slovak political organizations. The raid began on July 25, 1945, with the insurgents crossing the Polish border to support the resistance of Ukrainians in Zakerzonia against the chauvinistic policy of the Poles. They engaged in armed clashes with Polish military units in the Lemko region and, on August 22, 1945, approximately 500 UPA soldiers crossed the Polish-Slovak border without a shot.

The raid was strategically and tactically planned and the Ukrainian partisans were able to avoid serious clashes with Polish military units and hardly engaged in armed conflict with Czechoslovakian military and police forces. During the raid, the insurgents were able to positively influence the Slovak population and activate anti-communist sentiments in the country. Communist historiography in Czechoslovakia and Russian pseudo-science engaged in myth-making and accused Ukrainian soldiers of oppressing local residents and repressing Jews.

However, contemporary Slovak historiography, based on archival documents, has refuted these accusations. Unfortunately, there is no information whether D. Vitovsky was able to establish any lasting political relations with anti-communist Slovak democratic movements. Overall, the author believes that the UPA’s raid enabled Ukrainian insurgents to better inform Slovak society and international political circles about the goals and objectives of the national liberation movement, demonstrate the high military capability of the insurgent units, and express their support for Ukrainians in Slovakia.

Keywords: propaganda raid, Ukrainian Insurgent Army, the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists, Slovak anti-communist underground, D. Vitovsky