Ukraine's Parliament Votes to Ban Moscow-Linked Religious Organizations

Ukraine's parliament has passed a bill banning religious groups linked to the Russian Orthodox Church or any faith supporting Russia's invasion. This legislation, approved by 265 votes to 29, is seen as targeting the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC), despite its claims of independence from Moscow.

The new law provides the government with the authority to ban any religious group deemed too closely connected to Russia or supportive of its invasion. The UOC has declared its loyalty to Ukraine and insists it has severed ties with the Russian Orthodox Church. However, the Ukrainian government maintains that the UOC remains canonically tied to the Moscow-based patriarch, who has described Russia's invasion as a holy war.

Religious Groups Under Scrutiny

The bill allows the government to investigate suspect religious groups, but any enforcement action would only take effect nine months after the law's publication. The legislation explicitly bans activities of the Russian Orthodox Church, labelling it "an ideological extension of the regime of the aggressor state" and "an accomplice to war crimes and crimes against humanity."

The Ukrainian Orthodox Church has had a long-standing affiliation with the Russian Orthodox Church. Three months after Russia's invasion in 2022, the UOC declared its "full self-sufficiency and independence" from Moscow. Despite this, many Ukrainians remain suspicious of the church.

Legal and Cultural Implications

A lawyer representing the UOC criticised the legislation as a "grotesque violation of religious freedom." Robert Amsterdam, whose firm is based in Washington and London, stated, "It's rare in law to find a bill so contemptuous of legal standards as this bill." He added that they would challenge it in every court possible, including the United Nations.

Amsterdam argued that the new law makes it impossible for the UOC to defend itself because it targets any religious organisation that the Russian Orthodox Church claims to control in its governing documents. He also noted that the bill targets any religious organisation whose "authorised persons" are convicted of crimes against Ukraine's security, which he described as illegal "collective punishment."

Historical Context and Current Tensions

The approval of this legislation comes more than a year and a half after it was first endorsed by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and underwent multiple revisions. The bill now requires Zelenskyy's signature, which is expected. "It is our common duty to guarantee Ukrainian spiritual independence," Zelenskyy said earlier this month.

Since Russia's full-scale invasion began, criminal proceedings have been initiated against over 100 clerics of the UOC for alleged war-related crimes. Nearly 50 have been charged, and 26 have received court sentences. Some clerics were exchanged for Ukrainians held in Russian captivity.

Evidence and Accusations

After searching UOC church sites, Ukraine's security agency shared photos of evidence found, including rubles, Russian passports, and pro-Russian leaflets. The State Service of Ukraine for Ethnopolitics and Freedom of Conscience stated that after examining the UOC's governing documents, it remains a structural unit of the Russian Orthodox Church.

Leaders of other religious groups in Ukraine report severe persecution in Russian-occupied areas. The OCU was formed by merging two breakaway churches created alongside Ukraine's political independence from Russia. In 2019, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople recognised the OCU as completely independent or "autocephalous."

Broader Religious Conflict

Russian President Vladimir Putin has justified the invasion partly by claiming Moscow oversees a wider "Russian world," a sphere of cultural and spiritual influence across present-day Russia, Ukraine, and Belarus. Ukrainians view this concept as ideological aggression, noting that Kyiv adopted Christianity in the 10th century and was a political and spiritual centre long before Moscow rose.

Moscow Patriarch Kirill has portrayed the war as part of a metaphysical struggle against Western values. In March, Kirill oversaw a council declaring Russia's invasion a "holy war" defending the region's "single spiritual space." The document claims Russia is protecting against globalism and Western values deemed satanic.

This legislative move reflects deep-rooted religious and cultural struggles behind the ongoing conflict between Ukraine and Russia.