The DESS announced the launch of an investigation into the Boryspil Diocese of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church regarding its ties to the Russian Orthodox Church

The State Service of Ukraine for Ethnopolitics and Freedom of Conscience (DESS) has officially launched an investigation into the possible affiliation of the “Administration of the Boryspil Diocese of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church” with the Russian Orthodox Church.

According to the DESS website, the decision to launch the investigation was formalized by a corresponding order issued by the agency on June 19, 2026. A specially formed investigative team began its work on August 24, 2026.

This procedure is being carried out in strict accordance with the provisions of the Law of Ukraine “On Freedom of Conscience and Religious Organizations” and the approved procedure for identifying signs that religious structures are controlled by foreign organizations whose activities are prohibited in the country. The State Agency for Religious Affairs emphasized that the agency “operates within the legal framework, observing the principles of religious freedom,” however, any identified instances of external influence or subordination to banned organizations will be thoroughly investigated, and the experts’ findings will be presented to the general public.

As a reminder, it recently came to light that the State Service of Ukraine for Ethnopolitics and Freedom of Conscience (DESS) has launched an official investigation into the Zaporizhzhia Diocese of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC). The main purpose of the inspection is to determine whether the diocese’s leadership has administrative and canonical ties to a “foreign religious organization,” by which the Russian Orthodox Church (ROC) is implied.