Russian Orthodox Church tries to form broader nationalist ideology around war in Ukraine - ISW

This is stated in a report by the Institute for the Study of War (ISW).

It is noted that the head of the Russian Orthodox Church-Moscow Patriarchate (ROC MP), Patriarch Kirill, chaired the congress of the World Russian People's Council, which adopted a document in which the church strengthened the Kremlin's rhetoric about Russia's war in Ukraine and called it an existential and civilizational "holy war."

This is a significant deviation for the Russian authorities, who have so far carefully avoided officially labeling Russia's invasion of Ukraine as any kind of "war."

The report says that the ROC MP appears to be bringing together previous parallel Kremlin narrative efforts into a relatively coherent ideology centered on national identity and demographic revival that promises Russians a period of national renaissance in exchange for social and civic responsibilities.  

The Russian Orthodox Church emphasizes that "restoring the unity of the Russian people" through the war in Ukraine is a key condition for the survival and successful development of Russia during the 21st century. ISW analysts believe that this call is a full-scale destruction of the Ukrainian nation and its absorption into Russia. 

At the same time, the Kremlin may decide not to fully embrace the ultra-nationalist ideology that the ROC MP has proposed, but it will likely borrow and use it to support military action in Ukraine and any future acts of aggression against Russia's neighbors and the West.

• On March 5, the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Humanitarian and Information Policy recommended that the parliament adopt in the second reading and in general a bill banning religious organizations associated with Russia.