Ukraine's parliament passes bill banning Moscow-linked church

MPs Mykola Kniazhytskyi and Yaroslav Zhelezniak reported the information.

The bill was approved by 265 MPs. According to Zhelezniak, the law will come into effect 30 days after its publication. However, one provision allows the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate (UOC-MP) communities nine months to sever ties with the Russian Orthodox Church.

“A historic day. We’ve put an end to the Russian Orthodox Church and its branches in Ukraine. The Verkhovna Rada has passed Bill No. 8371, which bans religious organizations with ties to the aggressor country. The bill passed with 265 votes in favor. This was a matter of principle for me,” Mykola Kniazhytskyi said after the vote.

The law provides that:

• The Russian Orthodox Church (ROC) will be banned as a religious organization.

• The activities of all religious organizations affiliated with the ROC will be terminated through a clear procedure, including investigation, an order to comply with the law, and a court injunction.

• The ROC and its affiliated organizations will be prohibited from using state and municipal property.

• The process for communities to transition to the Orthodox Church of Ukraine will be simplified.

Mykola Kniazhytskyi, an MP from the European Solidarity party, discussed the ban during a briefing.

“It is crucial to implement the law banning the Russian Orthodox Church in Ukraine, not just pass it. Government agencies have systematically undermined the transition of communities to the Orthodox Church of Ukraine since 2019,” Mykola Kniazhytskyi emphasized.

“Today is a momentous day for every Ukrainian who cares about the future. This should have been done a long time ago. We started working on this bill back in 2022, following the full-scale invasion. Considering what Petro Poroshenko and the previous government did to secure the Tomos, we knew that as long as the Russian Church and the Kremlin's ‘fifth column’ were active here, Ukrainian Orthodoxy would be at risk. This threat extends to every Ukrainian citizen and national security,” said Kniazhytskyi.

He emphasized that the legislation banning the Russian Orthodox Church is based on the principles and norms of the European Convention on Human Rights, the Ukrainian Constitution, and decisions by the Constitutional Court of Ukraine.

“The Russian Orthodox Church is not related to religion or spirituality. Its branches and subsidiaries in Ukraine should be closed as well. Those who cooperate with them should end that cooperation. We have never banned any Ukrainian church. We have only banned connections with the Russian so-called church, the FSB, and Putin. This is the only ban in place, and it takes effect immediately,” the representative from the European Solidarity party said.

He noted that in some contentious cases, court proceedings might be delayed for up to nine months.

“This is a compromise to ensure we get a majority vote in the hall. However, the immediate ban on the Russian Orthodox Church and the prohibition of cooperation with them, including the closure of these organizations, will take effect as soon as this law is adopted,” he added.

The MP reminded that previously, the government had undermined the process of renaming churches from the UOC-MP to the ROC, so it’s crucial to prevent any further interference from the authorities with the Moscow church.

“It is essential that this bill is implemented without any sabotage. If the Ukrainian government, the State Service for Ethnic Policy and Freedom of Conscience, or the Ministry of Justice undermine this bill as they did with the renaming bill, we will continue to fight. And we will definitely win this fight because Ukraine will prevail,” he emphasized.

The MP noted that the aggressor aims to disrupt the process of decolonization, the formation of our church, and spiritual independence, and to protect its network of agents, which continues to deceive Ukrainians and fight against us.

“Today, this ends. We must put an end to the Russian threat in Ukraine,” Kniazhytskyi concluded.

• The Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate is connected to the Russian Orthodox Church. This Moscow-linked church has broadly supported Russia's war against Ukraine.