Ukrainian Orthodox journalists inform European Commission representatives about persecution of UOC

On December 3-5, 2024, a series of meetings of Ukrainian Orthodox journalists and researchers of the Ukrainian church crisis with representatives of the European Commission and other human rights organizations took place in Brussels. The facts about the persecution of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church and violations of the fundamental rights and freedoms of Ukrainian citizens were brought to the attention of the European Community. This is reported by the UOJ.

It is reported that the participants of the events were presented with a documentary film by journalist Denis Lapin, which tells about the persecution of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church from 2018 to 2024. Also, the hierarch of the UOC, Metropolitan Luke of Zaporizhzhia and Melitopol, presented a report in which he analyzed and criticized the scandalous law 3894-IX, aimed at banning the activities of the UOC. The hierarch called on European politicians to stop the ongoing pressure on the Church.

In addition, on December 3, representatives of the initiative met with the Conference of European Churches. The head of the advocacy program, Elizabeth Kitanovich, expressed concern about the ban on the UOC, noting that it was the first time she had seen such a large-scale persecution of a religious organization. She emphasized that the law banning the Ukrainian Orthodox Church has not been assessed by the Venice Commission and has not yet been translated into European languages.

Later, on December 4, the UOC delegation took part in the European Prayer Breakfast, where issues of religious freedom were discussed. The event supported the call for an international conference on the UOC in 2025. Ukrainian Orthodox journalists held talks with representatives of the European Commission, during which it was decided to include the Ukrainian church issue on the agenda of negotiations on Ukraine’s European integration, which will begin in 2025.

Earlier, the head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation, Sergei Lavrov, confirmed that the Ukrainian church issue will be one of the subjects of future peace talks between Russia and Ukraine. The official said that Russia would not tolerate the ban on the Ukrainian Orthodox Church.