Critics of Ukrainian bill to ban Russian Orthodox Church seek US support, sources say
Critics of Ukrainian bill to ban Russian Orthodox Church seek US support (Vitalii Nosach, RBC-Ukraine)
Opponents of the bill to ban the Russian Orthodox Church (ROC) have launched an active campaign against it in the West. However, the US is not too concerned about this initiative.
The main driver of this campaign was former MP from the pro-Russian Party of Regions and the Opposition Platform – For Life Vadym Novynskyi, who has long-standing and close ties to the ROC and the UOC and left Ukraine shortly after the full-scale invasion of Russia. He hired, among others, American lawyer Robert Amsterdam, who has begun to work hard to carry out lobbying.
Amsterdam's task is eased by the fact that there are many Republicans among Trumpists who are ready to seize on any argument to refuse to help Ukraine. Amsterdam had an interview with Trumpist media icon Tucker Carlson, where he spoke about the “oppression of the church in Ukraine” (55 million people viewed the interview). Carlson did not need to be convinced - he previously stated that "Zelenskyy banned Christianity."
According to RBC-Ukraine sources in the parliament, the “West is against” argument is being actively manipulated and its role is being exaggerated. “The Americans would probably like this bill to not exist at all. But since it exists, they have put forward certain wishes,” says one of the sources. They want the bill to be sent to international organizations, such as the OSCE, for analysis, and this means that its adoption will be delayed for at least several more months.
The US Commission on International Religious Freedom has also asked Ukraine for clarification on the draft law and pointed to a number of “problematic provisions.” The argumentation of the bill's supporters is that it does not actually address religious issues (roughly speaking, no one tells anyone how to pray), but only concerns national security. And this is an obvious task No.1 for Ukraine, in its current state of war.
“Of course, lobbyists can find some congressman or senator, and he will say something against the bill. But that's it,” says a source from the European Solidarity faction.
Banning a branch of the Russian Orthodox Church
In October 2023, the Verkhovna Rada adopted in the first reading government bill No. 8371, which brings the UOC of the Moscow Patriarchate closer to an official ban, as it is governed by the aggressor country. However, the bill has not yet been adopted as a whole.
In April 2024, 83% of Ukrainians believed that the state should interfere in the activities of the UOC of the Moscow Patriarchate to some extent. 63% believe that this church needs to be completely banned. Another 20% are now in favor of a milder approach that does not imply a complete ban but provides for state control and supervision.
12% of respondents believe that nothing should be done with no interference at all, and only certain possible cases of offenses should be investigated.
