From the myth of the “Heavenly Jerusalem” to the slogans of Polish politicians: who needs the story of the relocation of Jews from Israel to Ukraine, and Ukrainians to Poland.
In Poland, Ukropolin is spreading — an anti-Semitic and Ukrainophobic conspiracy theory of Russian origin. According to it, Jews are supposedly to relocate from Israel to Ukraine and create a new state there, while Ukrainians are to settle in Poland, gain citizenship, and gradually deprive Poles of control over their own country. Supporters of this version fit Russia’s war against Ukraine into the same fictional plan: as if Ukrainian territories are being deliberately cleared for future Jewish population.
Author: Alexander Khmelnitsky
Poland, November 2026: why the “new conspiracy” is being talked about now
There are no decisions by the authorities of Poland, Ukraine, or Israel confirming such a project. But the story itself has been used for several years in Polish political debates, publications, and speeches by nationalist activists.
The reason for addressing it at the beginning of November 2026 is related to new research and public statements. In September, the Polish Gabriel Narutowicz Institute of Political Thought presented a 60-page report by Dr. Katarzyna Kwiatkowska-Moskalewicz “Who Scares Ukropolin? A Conceptual Analysis of the Russian Narrative in Poland.” On September 23, the findings of the study were discussed on TOK FM radio. Then, on October 7, the Polish organization Demagog checked the latest statements about the alleged preparation for the takeover of part of Poland by Ukrainians. By early November, the topic was again in the Polish and Ukrainian information agenda.
The name itself has been used on the Polish internet approximately since 2022. It is composed of “Ukro“, referring to Ukraine, and Polin — the name of Poland in Hebrew. Conspiracy supporters use this word to denote the alleged Polish-Ukrainian state formation, which is supposedly to be controlled by Jews and foreign political elites.
In reality, it is not about a bill, an international treaty, or an initiative of any government. It is a political myth that connects real migration processes, the Russian war, and international cooperation with long-standing notions of secret Jewish world governance.
NANews has previously analyzed a related legend about the “Heavenly Jerusalem”.
In the Polish version, another element was added — the alleged loss of Poland’s independence.
Who is Ukraine intended for and why is Poland needed in this scenario
One of the most striking examples of the spread of Ukropolin was found not on the internet. At the end of 2025, near the Centrum metro station in Warsaw, leaflets “Ukropolin and its history” were distributed, prepared by the movement “Sovereignty of the Polish People” (Suwerenność Narodu Polskiego).
The authors of the leaflet claimed that Ukraine should become a refuge for Jews in case of worsening conditions in Israel in the Middle East. According to this version, the death of Ukrainians in the war and the departure of millions of refugees to Europe supposedly free up territories for new residents. A special place in the alleged plan was assigned to Poland: Ukrainians who moved there were supposedly to gain citizenship, voting rights, and eventually become the political majority.
Thus, two assertions are combined into a single construct: Jews are supposedly occupying Ukraine, and Ukrainians — Poland. The organization of this process is attributed to either Jewish circles, the USA, and other Western states, or Polish authorities. At the same time, no documents capable of confirming the existence of such a plan are presented by the theory’s spreaders.
The leaflet also contains a characteristic contradiction. Its authors simultaneously complain about the alleged mass settlement of Ukrainians in Poland and claim that many refugees have already returned home but continue to illegally receive Polish benefits 800+ — state payments to families with children. The internal inconsistency of the statements does not prevent them from being used to form suspicions towards Ukrainian refugees.
A separate place in this construct is occupied by the Russian war. The authors of the leaflet question Moscow’s responsibility for the threat to Poland’s security and state: “It is not Putin who threatens with war, but those who scare with him.” Polish politicians supporting Ukraine are called traitors to national interests. As a result, Russian aggression is pushed to the background, and aid to Ukraine is presented as dangerous for Poland itself.
From the Khazar Khaganate to “Israel 2.0”: Russian roots
To understand the origin of Ukropolin, one must turn to much older anti-Semitic mythology. One of its central images is Khazaria.
The Khazar Khaganate existed in the Middle Ages on the territories of the Black Sea and Caspian regions. Around the 8th century, part of its ruling elite adopted Judaism. This historical fact has no relation to any modern plans for the relocation of Israel, but even in Russian anti-Semitic journalism of the 19th century, Khazars were depicted as participants in a centuries-old conspiracy against Slavic peoples.
After the collapse of the USSR, the theory received a new name — “Third Khazaria.” In the views of its supporters, the Bolshevik regime was supposedly the “second Khazaria,” and the future “third” was to arise on Ukrainian territories. In this way, anti-Semitic authors tried to link completely different historical eras and political events into one fictional plot.
In the 2000s, Russian ultra-nationalist circles supplemented this story with claims about the “world government,” NATO, and Western elites. Since 2012, the fantasy of a “New Khazaria” on Ukrainian lands has been discussed in radical circles. After the Maidan and the start of Russian aggression in 2014, it was adapted to the new political situation.
Then the names “Heavenly Jerusalem,” “New Jerusalem,” and “Israel 2.0” became widespread.
Conspiracy theorists claimed that a Jewish state was planned to be created in the south and east of Ukraine, where millions of Israeli residents would relocate. In different versions, the borders, the proposed capital, the timing, and the number of settlers changed. NANews thoroughly analyzed this legend, including the fictional date of 2031.
One of the notable spreaders of such claims was pro-Russian activist Igor Berkut. He presented himself as the leader of the “Great Ukraine” movement, talked about the “New Jerusalem” project, showed maps of the proposed relocation, and claimed about the supposedly appeared first settlers in Odessa. In one version, the implementation period of the plan was called 2027.
These plots also penetrated the pro-Russian environment in the occupied territories of Donetsk and Luhansk regions. In 2019, Russian presidential adviser Sergey Glazyev publicly claimed that Ukrainian authorities were planning to settle Donbass with Jews. The Kremlin then distanced itself from his words, calling them the personal opinion of the adviser, but such a statement was already made not only in marginal journalism but also by a person from the Russian president’s entourage.
In her research, Katarzyna Kwiatkowska-Moskalewicz relies, in particular, on the works of anthropologist Viktor Shnirelman and information operations researcher Konstantin Zydyraki. They help trace how anti-Semitic myths were combined with Russian propaganda against Ukraine and the West. This does not prove that Vladimir Putin personally invented Ukropolin or directs every Polish spreader of the theory. However, the origin of the key elements of this plot in the Russian nationalist and pro-Kremlin environment is documented.
Who turned Ukropolin into a Polish political slogan
Among the most notable popularizers of the term in Poland, the study names former diplomat Krzysztof Baliński.
He released the books “Poland or UkroPolin, that is, Poland — the Palestine of Europe?” in 2023 and “UkroPolin. From A to Z” in 2025. In his interpretation, the alleged unification of Poland and Ukraine is linked to Jewish and German circles, and Polish politicians are depicted as executors of their plans.
The leader of the “Sovereignty of the Polish People” movement Sławomir Zakrzewski used the slogan “Stop Ukropolin” at farmers’ protests in 2024. The Warsaw leaflet of late 2025 directly referred to Baliński’s book.
A significant role in spreading such ideas was played by the environment of the publication Myśl Polska, associated with the traditions of the Polish national-democratic movement. Among its authors is mentioned former Sejm deputy and founder of the pro-Russian party “Zmiana” Mateusz Piskorski. Publicist Konrad Renkas used the term Ukropolin as early as 2022. In May 2024, he published an article “War for UkroPolin?”, where he suggested that the unification of Poland and Ukraine could be beneficial to the USA and the UK as a way to involve Ukraine in NATO through Poland.
NATO — the North Atlantic Alliance, of which Poland has been a member since 1999. However, neither Poland’s membership in the alliance nor its support for Ukraine confirms the existence of a united state project.
The study also examines the activities of Agnieszka Pivar, who previously collaborated with the Polish edition of the Russian state Sputnik. In January 2023, she announced her departure from Myśl Polska, and later published reflections on the “New Jerusalem” as the alleged secret goal of the war. Journalists described her meetings with Alexander Lukashenko, Sergey Lavrov, and the Russian ambassador in Warsaw Sergey Andreev, as well as contacts with the biker club “Night Wolves.” Subsequently, Pivar participated in events of Grzegorz Braun’s party.
These connections show through which political and media circles the corresponding ideas were spread. But contacts with Russian representatives themselves are not yet proof of direct funding or receiving instructions from Moscow.
The most notable political popularizer of the slogan became Grzegorz Braun, leader of the “Confederation of the Polish Crown.” In the 2025 presidential elections, he received 6.34% of the votes in the first round. During the campaign, formulations “Not Ukropol, not Ukropolin, not Judeopolonia” were used, combining the rejection of Ukrainian presence with anti-Semitic notions of Jewish influence on Poland.
Braun was widely known even before this campaign. In December 2023, he extinguished Hanukkah candles with a fire extinguisher during a ceremony in the Polish Sejm — the country’s parliament. Later, the politician used the expression “broad front of fire extinguishers,” and the image of a fire extinguisher appeared on the products of his supporters.
The Polish study mentions other nationalist associations, including Kamraci and Bronimy Polskiej Granicy, as well as disputes around the memory of the Jedwabne pogrom of Jews in 1941, committed by local residents under German control. The magazine Najwyższy Czas!, founded by Janusz Korwin-Mikke, is also considered separately.
At the same time, not all Polish right-wing publications support the Ukropolin theory. As the researcher notes, Do Rzeczy is critical of it, and Gazeta Polska directly links such plots with Kremlin disinformation. Therefore, the spread of the conspiracy by certain political circles cannot be equated with the position of the entire Polish society.
Why Israel, Chabad, and Hanukkah candles are in this story
Israel is used in the Ukropolin theory not only as a supposed source of future settlers. Practically any contacts between Israel and Ukraine can be presented by its supporters as evidence of a secret political agreement.
For example, in November 2022, the magazine Najwyższy Czas! published material mentioning Ukropolin in connection with the planned Ukrainian-Israeli Innovation Summit in Warsaw in December — a Ukrainian-Israeli forum for innovation cooperation. Similar meetings were previously held in Tel Aviv and Kyiv. But a regular international business event was turned into a reason for suspicions of a hidden plan.
The same publication used the term Ukropolin in relation to a protest by Ukrainians in Krakow, after which a concert by the Russian band Little Big was canceled. The civic activity of Ukrainian refugees was presented as an example of their interference in Polish politics.
Conspiracy theorists assign a special role to Chabad. This is an international Hasidic religious movement that originated in the late 18th century and actively works with Jewish communities in Eastern Europe. Chabad is not the government of Israel, does not manage Israeli citizenship, and does not have the authority to change state borders.
However, in Braun’s speeches and Baliński’s books, Chabad is attributed with participation in the creation of the “Third Khazaria” and influence on Polish leaders. At the same time, Judaism, political Zionism, Chabad, and the state of Israel are described as if they were a single centralized structure. This substitution allows representing the religious activities of Jewish communities as part of a supposed international conspiracy.
Similarly, the theme of Hanukkah is used. For the Israeli reader, this is a well-known holiday during which candles are lit on a menorah. Such ceremonies have been held in the Polish parliament for many years. But supporters of anti-Semitic theories present them as signs of the subordination of Polish authorities to Jewish organizations.
The study also draws attention to President Karol Nawrocki’s decision not to continue the Hanukkah tradition in the presidential palace in 2025. However, there is no basis to automatically explain this decision by the influence of Ukropolin: different political events cannot be united by a common cause without evidence.
In December 2025, such disinformation took on a new form. On a fake TikTok account, videos appeared with an artificially created voice, presented as the voice of Miroslava Keryk, head of the Warsaw foundation “Ukrainian House,” which helps Ukrainian refugees. In the recording, it was allegedly proposed to light an additional Hanukkah candle for Ukrainian servicemen. At the same time, a fake screenshot of a message on behalf of Keryk was spread.
Earlier, in the same 2025, fake appeals were sent on behalf of the foundation to Polish city authorities with requests to allow rallies of Ukrainians in support of presidential candidate Rafał Trzaskowski. The study describes these episodes, but the identities of the organizers of the attacks have not been established.
A similar mechanism has already been encountered in Russian disinformation around Ukraine. NANews reported on fakes related to Hasidic pilgrimage in Uman, and on the spread of anti-Semitic plots around Ukrainian politics.
Uman is a Ukrainian city where Jewish pilgrims come annually to the grave of Rabbi Nachman of Breslov. This is a religious tradition, not evidence of Israel’s territorial plans. However, in conspiracy publications, real pilgrim trips are combined with fictional payments to settlers, stories of Jewish autonomy, and fake videos. In this way, even ordinary contacts between Jewish and Ukrainian organizations can be turned into alleged evidence of a pre-conceived conspiracy.
What fact-checking showed and who benefits from the theory
In October 2026, Polish historian Lucyna Kulińska, who participated in events related to Braun’s political environment, again spoke about alleged Ukrainian territorial claims to Poland.
In a recording published on October 3, she claimed that Ukraine intends to occupy part of Podkarpacie — a Polish region on the border with Ukraine. It was allegedly about 19 powiats, that is, administrative districts. According to Kulińska, Poles were to be evicted under the guise of evacuation and not allowed to return home.
This story was supplemented with claims of mass deaths of people vaccinated against COVID-19, allegedly expected within five years. After this, according to the conspiracy version, a Polish-Ukrainian state under Jewish leadership was to emerge. Thus, anti-Semitism, Ukrainophobia, and disinformation about vaccination were combined in one story.
On October 7, the organization Demagog checked these statements. One of the reasons for the talks about territorial claims was the initiative of Verkhovna Rada deputy Ihor Huz to use Ukrainian versions of the names of some Polish settlements in Ukrainian documents. However, the proposal did not provide for changing state borders.
Polish evacuation rules also do not contain a plan for forced resettlement of the population with a subsequent ban on returning. The claim of mass deaths of people vaccinated against COVID-19 is not supported by medical data. Fact-checkers found no evidence of the key elements of the alleged takeover.
As a result, the Ukropolin theory is not just a set of fantastic claims about the future of Europe. It allows portraying Ukrainian refugees as a threat to the Polish state, Jewish religious traditions as a sign of hidden political control, and aid to Ukraine as a possible betrayal of national interests.
According to Katarzyna Kwiatkowska-Moskalewicz, such views contribute to the spread of distrust towards Ukrainians, Jews, and politicians supporting cooperation with Kyiv. At the same time, they shift attention from Russian aggression to the alleged conspiracy between Ukraine, Israel, and the West.
Such a result meets the interests of Russian propaganda. At the same time, it is important to distinguish the origin of the theory and the direct organization of its spread: the Polish study traces the Russian roots of the conspiracy plot but does not establish that every supporter of it in Poland acts on Putin’s personal instruction.
Ukropolin does not exist as a state project. There is a documented history of the spread of the anti-Semitic myth — from Russian nationalist journalism to Polish leaflets, publications, and politicians’ speeches.
The scheme, according to which Jews are supposedly to occupy Ukraine, and Ukrainians — Poland, allows simultaneously directing suspicions against two peoples. In it, the real consequences of the Russian war, the migration of millions of Ukrainians, international cooperation, and Jewish religious life are turned into details of a fictional deal. It is precisely on this mixture of verifiable events with unconfirmed accusations that the Ukropolin theory is based.
