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Russia urges OSCE to condemn Kiev’s stance on seizure of churches

The Russian foreign ministry says the conflict is the result of the systematic silencing of the problems of limiting religious freedoms and violating the rights of believers by the Kiev authorities

© Mikhail Sokolov//TASS

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Russian Orthodox Church slams seizure of churches in Ukraine

MOSCOW, December 29. /TASS/. The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) should regard Kiev’s position on the seizure of churches in Ukraine as the violation of the international commitments in the sphere of human rights, the Russian Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday.

"We believe that the OSCE should unambiguously qualify the position of the Kiev authorities in the situation with the seizure of churches of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate as the violation of Kiev’s international commitments in the human rights sphere," the ministry stressed.

The ministry has voiced concerns over the situation in the Ptichye village in the Rovno region, western Ukraine, where the Dormition Church is being seized by the radical Right Sector extremists and the supporters of the non-canonical Kiev Patriarchate.

The conflict is the result of the "systematic silencing of the problems of limiting religious freedoms and violating the rights of believers by the Ukrainian authorities," the ministry said.

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"Although the situation is serious, still there has been no adequate reaction from the OSCE leadership and its Special Monitoring Mission in Ukraine [SMM]," the statement says.

The monitors said last week that no "serious incidents" or damage have been registered. The report is based only on the data provided by local police, the ministry said, calling on the SMM to speak to the clergy to verify the claims.

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Ukraine crisis Foreign policy OSCE Religion

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