Rep. Goncharenko proposed easing pressure on the Ukrainian Orthodox Church in the interest of achieving peace

Oleksiy Goncharenko, a member of the Ukrainian Parliament from the “Eurosolidarity” faction, proposed reaching a compromise on humanitarian issues to establish peace in the country. The politician identified three key areas for potential agreements: language policy, historical memory, and religious issues.

In his statement, the MP noted that the issue of church affiliation requires a long time to resolve. In the parliamentarian’s view, the presence of supporters of the “Russian Church” in Ukraine should not be a reason for strict bans, provided that the activities of religious organizations are limited to matters of faith and do not pose a threat to national security. ““If there are a dozen people who want to attend the Russian Orthodox Church, let them go. The main thing is to ensure that they talk about God there, not about betraying the Motherland,” — Goncharenko emphasized.

In addition, the lawmaker touched on the topic of the use of the Russian language. He proposed bringing language legislation into line with European standards, while preserving Ukrainian as the primary language in the spheres of education, science, and culture. Goncharenko argued that seeking such compromises is a necessary step toward achieving peace, adding that, in his view, this approach does not conflict with the protection of Ukraine’s national interests.

As a reminder, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov previously stated that compromises regarding Ukraine cannot touch upon the key, fundamental principles upon which the existence of the state and millions of people depend. The foreign minister emphasized that this refers, among other things, to issues related to the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church.