ABSTRACT
This chapter has a dual purpose. The first is to reveal the connection between Poland’s aspiration to become a member of the European Union (EU), and Poland’s policy towards its Ukrainian minority. The second is to assess Polish-Ukrainian inter-state relations and the potential ramifications of halting the process of European integration at the Polish-Ukrainian border. In order to achieve these objectives, it will be necessary to outline a number of themes. First we will consider some of the general issues surrounding the rights of ethnic minorities in Poland, and how they relate to the question of Polish accession to the EU. Second, within that same framework we will analyse bilateral Polish-Ukrainian relations. Finally, we will consider the sometimes bitter history of Poland’s Ukrainian minority between the years 1918 and 1999.
