Head of UOC-KP establishes diocese in Greece, appoints a member of schismatic structure as head

on May 2, 2026, the UOC-KP officially expanded its borders to include new hierarchs and parishes abroad. According to the head of the Kyiv Patriarchate, Nikodim Kobzar, the organization accepted the former head of the so-called Church of True Orthodox Christians of Greece (Greek: Ἐκκλησία Γνησίων Ὀρθοδόξων Χριστιανῶν), Yakov Yannakis, who will head the diocese of the UOC-KP in Greece.

Itis reported that by the decree of Nikodim Kobzar, a diocese of the UOC-KP was established in Greece, the management of which was entrusted to Yakov Yannakis. Within the new structure, he was given the title «Archbishop of Simferopol and Yevpatoria». This step followed official requests from the Greek side to join the «Kyiv Patriarchate».

In addition to the head of the diocese, the UOC-KP includes Greek parishes, a monastery and a number of clergy. The head of the Kyiv Patriarchate, Nikodim Kobzar, emphasized the importance of this event for strengthening the organization’s position, noting «the consistency of efforts to establish the Kyiv Patriarchate in the Orthodox world.»

As reported, on April 16, 2026, the head of the UOC-KP, Nikodim Kobzar , officially accepted a group of clergy and religious from the Czech Republic into the Kyiv Patriarchate. The Czech vicariate of the UOC-KP includes 10 parishes of the Ukrainian schism, formed in the Czech Republic in different years of the structure’s existence.