Supporting Kremlin and justifying Russian strikes: Two UOC-MP clerics detained in Odesa
Photo: SBU exposed clerics of the UOC-MP (ssu.gov.ua)
In Odesa, the agents of Ukraine's Security Service (SBU) exposed two clerics of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate (UOC-MP) who were working in Russia's interests. One of them created fakes for propaganda, while the other justified Russian strikes on Ukraine, the SBU press service reports.
A 58-year-old cleric of the Odesa diocese, in conversations with parishioners, praised Russian soldiers and insulted believers of other denominations. He maintained contact with former MP from the Party of Regions, Ihor Markov, who has been charged with treason.
The cleric also communicated with traitor Valerii Kaurov, who fled to Russia in 2014 and announced the creation of the so-called Odesa People's Republic.
How fake scheme works
On Kaurov's orders, the cleric, together with his 23-year-old daughter, posed with blank sheets of paper against the backdrop of famous landmarks in Odesa. The photos were sent to Russia, where propagandists added slogans calling for the occupation of the city. These fakes were then distributed by Russian TV and anonymous Telegram channels as "the opinion of Odesa residents."
Second cleric justifies Russian strikes
The second detainee is a 44-year-old archpriest who, in his sermons, justified Russian strikes on Ukraine.
The detainees now face up to 8 years in prison with confiscation of property.
Photo: Security Service of Ukraine
Scandals surrounding the UOC (MP)
Earlier, RBC-Ukraine sources reported that the Head of the UOC MP, Onufriy (Orest Berezovsky), holds a Russian passport. Photos of the document appeared online. According to the sources, information from the Russian passport database directly contradicts official statements from the church, which claims that Metropolitan Orest does not have a Russian passport.
Another high-profile case is the in absentia verdict for Metropolitan Vasyl Povorozniuk of the Luhansk diocese of the UOC (MP). Povorozniuk openly supported Russia's full-scale invasion back in 2022. In September, he traveled to Moscow and took part in the "ceremony" of annexing the occupied territories of Ukraine to Russia. The metropolitan also spoke at events organized by the occupation administration, including a "round table" in Luhansk attended by Leonid Pasechnik.
The SBU also exposed two parish priests in the Zhytomyr and Vinnytsia regions. They praised Putin, spread anti-Ukrainian propaganda and antisemitic remarks both among parishioners and on social media.
