Expert: Ukraine is not Russia — there cannot be favoritism for one denomination

In an interview to Portal-credo.ru, the head of the Management Board of the Institute of Religious Freedom (Kyiv), Oleskandr Zaiets, stressed that under the current president, the dialogue between the authorities and denominations has been of a narrow denominational character, which means that such a dialogue has a defect at the highest level. According to him, the situation regarding religious freedom in Ukraine is normal on the whole, but representatives of various confessions are concerned over the absence of the dialogue, especially over the new authorities' orientation toward supporting exclusively the Moscow Patriarchate.

"This orientation of the new authorities causes concern in the religious environment of Ukraine. This has to do not only with the Orthodox denominations independent from the Moscow Patriarchate but also a with wide range of other denominations, not only Christian but also non-Christian ones, which are concerned over the position of the country's leadership, which conducts dialogue only with one denomination. It, undoubtedly, does not promote religious freedom and the further development of interdenominational relations. And that is very important for Ukraine as it is a multiethnic and multidenominational society. This policy is problematic in prospect," Zaiets said.

According to the expert, there can be no privileged denomination in multiconfessional Ukraine: "Ukraine is not Russia. It has a completely different religious geography. But someone wants to liken it to Russia," said the expert.

The expert described the religious situation in different regions of Ukraine: "I think it is problematic to pursue such a policy in the western regions of Ukraine, first of all, due to the sentiments of the electorate. Also, there is a completely different confessional configuration there. For instance, in a number of regions, such as Lviv, Ivano-Frankivsk, Ternopil, the Greek Catholic Church is dominant. The position of the Kyivan Patriarchate is strong in a number of places. The position of the Protestants is also traditionally strong in the western regions. I think a wider dialogue is conducted there, even though the present situation differs from the past. As for the southern and eastern regions, in my opinion, they try to pursue the same policy as in Kyiv there. As for the Kyiv region, I know that the local authorities were open to a dialogue with a wide range of denominations.

According to Zaiets, despite all of the difficulties of the current processes in Ukraine, one is still optimistic that church-state relations will help establish the freedom of religion in the country.