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On the Horns of a Dilemma: The Story of the Ukrainian Division Halychyna

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***CONTINUED FROM INCOMPLETE EARLIER SUBMISSION*** Along the way the division showed itself to be an effective fighting unit and was often in the unenvious position of having to prop up understrenghted and outflanked strictly German forces.

The final stage of development might be called the period of general desperation. As the Germans were pushed back along the entire eastern from the summer of 1944 on, the overarching desire on the part of the German High Command was to throw as many divisions at the eastern front as possible. This meant that the Ukrainians fighting on the German side were finally in a position to gain concessions. By the early spring of 1945 an attempt was made to consolidate all Ukrainians into a single fighting force. This force was called the First Division of the Ukrainian National Army. The First Division fought under the Ukrainian flag and its own officer corps. Considering that the Ukrainians who originally joined the Germans had done so during a period when the prospects for German victory appeared solid, their motive seems quite clear and simple. For the most part these men enlisted in the hopes of some day forming the heart of an independent Ukrainian army. The held out hope for the creation of a sovereign Ukraine. But in 1945 their position had become as desperate, if not more so, than the Germans'. They could not hope to return to their homeland without facing horrific Soviet reprisals. So Hunczak's book ends where it begins--on the horns of a dilemma. Before passing judgment on these men one final question must be taken into consideration: Just were could a true Ukrainian nationalist have gone during this period to find the best prospects for the realization of a Ukrainian State?