Head of Ternopil Diocese of OCU calls Ukrainian Orthodox Church "part of Russian military machine"

The head of the Ternopil Diocese of the OCU, Nestor Pysyk, made a resonant statement about the Ukrainian Orthodox Church. The OCU hierarch is convinced that the UOC is «disguised as a Ukrainian church» while remaining «part of the Russian military machine.» Pysyk said that the UOC should be expelled from the territory of Ukraine as soon as possible. His words are reported by Ukrinform.

«This structure is an enemy of the Ukrainian people and the Ukrainian state. … It should not be in Ukraine because they are part of this Russian military machine, and no matter how they disguise themselves, no matter how they say that they are the Ukrainian church, their actions, their deeds indicate the exact opposite,» Pysyk said.

Earlier, the leaders of the stauropegial parishes of the OCU, which were previously under the jurisdiction of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, appealed to their former brethren with a call for full unity in the bosom of the OCU. The appeal of December 15, 2025, emphasizes the «canonical reality established by the Tomos of Autocephaly» and condemns the preservation of ties with the Moscow Patriarchate.