THE UKRAINIAN-POLISH CONFLICT DURING THE SECOND WORLD WAR: VARIABILITY OF CONTEMPORARY INTERPRETATIONS AND THEIR METHODOLOGICAL FRAMEWORKS

Abstract

The article is devoted to a comprehensive analysis of the Ukrainian-Polish conflict of 1942–1947 within the framework of the Second World War, with a particular focus on the variability of contemporary historical, politological and sociological interpretations and the methodological frameworks employed in their study. The use of an interdisciplinary approach allows for the integration of the “longue durée” perspective (F. Braudel), the concept of spatial and symbolic sovereignty (J. Sowa), the strategic logic of game theory (J. von Neumann, O. Morgenstern), the logic of formal system boundaries (K. Gödel), and political theology (E. Kantorowicz). This combination enables the Ukrainian-Polish conflict to be examined as a multidimensional system of interaction among structural, local, and symbolically sacralized factors, in which violence and deportations acquire both tactical and ontological significance. Special attention is devoted to the analysis of the impasse of Ukrainian and Polish national projects, the radicalization of ethnic violence, and the mechanisms of legitimizing the “political body” of the nation.The proposed multi-level methodological framework (structural, institutional, strategic, and logical-ontological) serves to analyze Ukrainian-Polish relations both historically and in contemporary perspectives. The framework allows for the integration of comparative analyses of regional conflicts, transformations of national memory, reconciliation policies, and diplomatic strategies. It is emphasized that the application of the perspectives of F. Braudel, J. Sowa, K. Gödel, E. Kantorowicz, and the game theory of J. von Neumann and O. Morgenstern facilitates the modeling of escalations, the assessment of the influence of sacralized narratives on identity formation and collective memory strategies, as well as the projection of potential scenarios of state and societal interactions under crisis conditions.The article demonstrates that the Ukrainian-Polish war should be understood not merely as a local confrontation over resources and territory, but as the interaction of structural, strategic, and sacralized factors that shaped the spatial-political and ethno-national reality of wartime and postwar periods. This approach opens prospects for the development of preventive security mechanisms and long-term reconciliation strategies