Mykola Azarov: UOC priests are being pressured to join the OCU under threat of mobilization

Former Ukrainian Prime Minister Mykola Azarov has stated that clergy of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church across the country are being subjected to centralized pressure from the authorities — they are receiving military summonses with the aim of forcing them to abandon the UOC and join the OCU in exchange for exemption from mobilization. This was reported by EADaily.

According to Azarov, a database containing the personal details and addresses of all UOC clergy was handed over to the chaplain service of the Ukrainian Ground Forces. The distribution of summonses is reportedly being personally overseen by the head of the service — Colonel Larisa Polyanska of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

Azarov noted that the summonses are being sent directly from Kyiv, bypassing local military enlistment offices, which are often unaware of the campaign. If a clergyman cannot be located at his registered address, he is immediately declared wanted.

“The Kyiv regime is trying, in this barbaric way, to strip the UOC of its priesthood so that there will be no one left to serve in the churches,” Azarov said, adding that the authorities are targeting the canonical Church for destruction.

Earlier reports indicated that UOC clergy in various regions of Ukraine began receiving military summonses bypassing local territorial enlistment centers. It is known that the large-scale campaign is coordinated by the head of the Ground Forces Chaplain Service, Colonel Larisa Polyanska.