Kiev, August 18, 2025
Photo: Ukrainian Orthodox Church
His Beatitude Metropolitan Onuphry of Kiev and All Ukraine has issued a forceful response to a government directive demanding that the Kiev Metropolia of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church produce more proof of its complete severance of all ties with the Russian Orthodox Church by August 18, calling the order a “gross interference” in Church affairs that violates both Ukrainian and international law.
The State Service for Ethnopolitics and Freedom of Conscience (DESS) has demanded that the Kiev Metropolia submit resolutions declaring the Church’s withdrawal from the ROC, invalidating all ROC provisions, recognizing as null and void ROC decisions regarding UOC dioceses, and publicly declaring disagreement with ROC appointments.
At the same time, the Ukrainian authorities have continually demonstrated that they have a prior commitment to persecuting the UOC and aren’t particularly interested in any statements or documents the Church might produce.
In a detailed letter responding to DESS, Met. Onuphry emphasizes that the Church was never properly notified about the investigation into its alleged Russian affiliation, nor given opportunity to present evidence in its defense. The Church received the ultimatum on July 21, with no prior official communication about the investigation that began in May.
“The Kiev Metropolis of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church was deprived of the opportunity to familiarize itself with the above-mentioned DESS documents that regulate the research process and, most importantly, to state its position on these issues,” Met. Onuphry states in his response.
The UOC primate particularly criticizes DESS for basing its investigation on what it called outdated and irrelevant evidence. He points out that DESS continues to cite a 2019 religious examination despite significant changes adopted at the Church’s May 27, 2022 Council, where its formally declared its independence from the Moscow Patriarchate.
His Beatitude also highlights that Ukrainian authorities are relying primarily on Russian documents rather than current UOC materials. “The research results are based mostly not on current documents of Ukraine, particularly on documents of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church... but predominantly on documents of a foreign state that carried out armed aggression against Ukraine,” the letter states. He notes that DESS used “publications from various internet resources, a significant number of which are also posted on websites of the state that carried out military aggression against Ukraine.”
The Metropolitan questions why investigators would “recognize the legitimacy for Ukraine of documents from foreign organizations of a state that carried out military aggression against Ukraine and/or temporarily occupied part of Ukraine’s territory.”
Met. Onuphry also challenges the competence and impartiality of the five-member investigation team, noting they lack expertise in theology or canon law and have publicly expressed biased views against the UOC. He has filed a court challenge regarding the investigation team’s composition.
The letter also extensively details the UOC’s humanitarian contributions since the start of the Russian war in 2022, documenting over 241.5 million UAH ($5.8 million) in total aid. This includes providing 193 vehicles to Ukrainian forces, delivering 1,037 tons of humanitarian supplies to the military, distributing 8,000 tons of aid to civilians, serving 1.5 million hot meals, and sheltering over 50,000 internally displaced persons in monasteries.
“Unfortunately, the modern social and humanitarian activities of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church remained outside the attention of the research group,” Met. Onuphry writes, questioning whether DESS had “simply ignored” these contributions to Ukraine’s war effort.
The Metropolitan argues that the law under which the Church is being investigated violates the European Convention on Human Rights, noting that “national security does not figure among the purposes listed in Article 9 §2” as legitimate grounds for restricting religious freedom.
DESS had demanded that Met. Onuphry submit resolutions declaring the Church’s withdrawal from ROC structure, invalidating all ROC provisions, recognizing as null and void ROC decisions regarding UOC dioceses, and publicly declaring disagreement with ROC appointments.
The Metropolitan’s response also criticizes DESS for referencing a September 2024 court decision that has not gained legal force and remains under appeal, calling it “inadmissible” to use pending litigation as a basis for administrative action.
Met. Onuphry concludes that the prescription’s requirements are “fictitious, have no relation to the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, and therefore cannot be accepted for implementation.” He characterizes the entire process as having a “frankly manipulative character” that is “absolutely far from objectivity and the realities in which the Ukrainian Orthodox Church exists.”
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