Czech SPD pushes to strip Zelensky of Order of the White Lion

The far‑right Freedom and Direct Democracy (SPD) party, which is part of the Czech coalition government, has tabled a proposal to have the lower house ask President Petr Pavel to revoke the Order of the White Lion – the Czech Republic’s highest state decoration – that was awarded to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in October 2022. SPD MP Jindřich Rajchl said the move follows Poland’s recent decision to take back Zelensky’s Order of the White Eagle after the Ukrainian president authorised a special‑forces unit to bear the name of the World‑War‑II Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA), a group linked to wartime massacres of Poles, Jews and Czechs. “We cannot stay silent when our highest state order is held by a man who names military units after Nazi monsters,” Rajchl told reporters.

Czech foreign minister Petr Macinka called the initiative a purely political gesture, noting that under Czech law only a final court ruling after a conviction can strip a state honour. “There is no legal way to strip a decoration without a court decision,” he said. Former president Miloš Zeman also voiced support for revoking the award, condemning the honour of “war criminals” responsible for atrocities during the war. The proposal has attracted criticism from opposition parties and legal experts, who say it lacks a statutory basis and is unlikely to succeed.

The debate reflects broader tensions in Central Europe over historical memory and the use of wartime symbols, with the Czech case echoing Poland’s recent actions and sparking a wider discussion about the political use of state decorations.