kyiv announces prosecution of head of Russian Orthodox Church

Ukraine announced on Saturday November 4 that it had initiated criminal proceedings against Patriarch Kirill, head of the Russian Orthodox Church, in absentia, for having “justified” the Russian invasion of its territory. Kirill undermined Ukraine’s territorial integrity by justifying armed aggression, according to Ukrainian authorities. The Ukrainian authorities explained in a press release that they had “collected evidence against the head of the Russian Orthodox Church, Vladimir Gundyaev (known as Kirill)”.

Ukraine, a predominantly Orthodox country, cut ties with Orthodox institutions linked to Russia after the start of the war. In October, the Ukrainian parliament voted to ban a Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC), linked to Moscow, accusing its members of collaborating with Russia. Once the most popular in Ukraine, this Church has lost its faithful for years as Ukrainian national sentiment has gained popularity in the face of former power Russia. This process accelerated with the creation in 2018 of a Ukrainian Orthodox Church independent of Moscow.