The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry is seeking to have Patriarch Kirill reinstated on the EU sanctions list

The Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs has announced that it is working to have Kirill, Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia, reinstated on the European Union’s sanctions lists. Kyiv hopes that the absence of the previous veto by the Hungarian leadership will allow the head of the Russian Orthodox Church and other previously excluded individuals to be included in the new sanctions packages.

According to“European Truth,” Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Georgiy Tikhiy stated that Ukrainian diplomats have been actively seeking a review of the EU sanctions lists in recent months. According to him, this concerns individuals who were previously removed from the sanctions under pressure from the Hungarian leadership, which exercised its veto power.

Tikhyi noted that Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sibiga is working to have these figures reinstated on the sanctions lists. “If Orbán is no longer there, let’s do it, ” the Foreign Ministry representative said at a briefing, commenting on the prospects for updating the restrictive measures.

The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry emphasized that Kyiv intends to focus on returning the so-called “big fish” to the lists. According to Tikhiy, the Ukrainian side also includes the head of the Moscow Patriarchate in this category.

The Foreign Ministry spokesperson also expressed hope that the names of other Russians who may be added to the updated sanctions list will become known in the near future. In addition, Ukraine plans to determine what conditions Viktor Orbán’s cabinet had previously put forward in exchange for exempting certain individuals from European restrictions.

As a reminder, we previously reported that the European Union is once again considering the possibility of adding the Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church, Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia, to the sanctions list as part of preparations for the next package of restrictive measures against Russia.