"UOC does not pass": the Expert told about the criteria for reservation of priests from mobilization

OCU lobbyist and freelance expert of the State Service for Ethnic Policy and Freedom of Conscience Andriy Smirnov spoke about the criteria that a religious organization must meet in order for the clergyman who heads it to receive a reservation from mobilization into the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The requirements listed by the expert indicate that priests of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church will not be able to avoid mobilization. Smirnov wrote about this on his Facebook account.

“On January 13, during a press conference “Freedom of Conscience in Ukraine: Its Enemies and Defenders”, the head of the State Service of Ukraine for Ethnic Policy and Freedom of Conscience, Viktor Yelensky, named the criteria for religious organizations that will be allowed to book clergy: state registration in the Unified State Register of Legal Entities, registered before 12.26.2024 in the controlled territory of Ukraine, tax reporting, no affiliation with the Russian Orthodox Church, the validity of the name,” — Smirnov wrote.

Earlier, the State Service of Ukraine for Ethnic Policy and Freedom of Conscience reported that priests of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church risk being deprived of the reservation from service in the Armed Forces of Ukraine, which was previously announced by the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine. According to DESS experts, the reason for this discriminatory step by the state is the failure of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church to comply with Law No. 2662-VIII (on renaming — ed.), which obliged the UOC to indicate in its name its affiliation with the Russian Orthodox Church.