Moscow Church has employed a new weapon against Ukraine, - Oleksandra Ustinova
This was reported by the head of the "Holos" faction Oleksandra Ustinova in an interview with Glavkom. The deputy noted that she wants the adoption of a bill regarding the Church in the coming months.
"In reality, I want to believe that the bill on Moscow priests will indeed be voted on because it is a demand of society. Now the key is to communicate it correctly with our international partners. Because I know how Russia is working powerfully now, especially in the United States, telling them that we have religious persecution," said the head of "Holos."
Ustinova reported that there were several trips by Ukrainian priests to Washington with explanations that there is no persecution in Ukraine.
"We have a truly unique country where the president is Jewish, the defense minister is Muslim, Orthodox and Catholic churches stand side by side, synagogues, and they want to build mosques. So, we really need to convey more that our country is not just multicultural but multi-religious, and we have never had any issues on this ground," she added.
According to the MP, the reason for this situation is that Americans open the law and read about religious organizations, although it is about the FSB. Ustinova mentioned that she constantly provides statistics on how many Moscow priests are currently imprisoned for helping Russians, and how many churches Russia has bombed.
"I have been approached several times from the Senate personally with a request to clarify this bill, and I understand that this is a constant routine work that needs to be done. Because this issue will be used, especially among Republicans, who are more religious, conservative, and their electorate often attends church," the deputy explained.
Oleksandra Ustinova emphasized that the bill regarding the Church must be adopted, but at the same time, it is necessary to explain on the international stage that the document is not about the Church at all.
Recall that on October 19, 2023, the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine adopted in the first reading bill No. 8371 on the prohibition of religious organizations associated with Russia. The bill effectively prohibits the activities of the UOC MP in Ukraine. After the adoption of this document in the first reading, half a hundred deputies, led by the first deputy head of the "Servant of the People" faction Andriy Motovylovets, appealed to the Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada Ruslan Stefanchuk with a call to send it for examination to the Venice Commission.
