GENEVA, September 8. /TASS/. Up to 2,000 churches of the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) have been seized in Ukraine since 2022, while as many as 3,000 more could be confiscated in the future, Mikhail Melekh, Special Representative of the Russian Foreign Minister for International Cooperation in Ensuring Freedom of Religion, said at a side event on the sidelines of the 63rd session of the UN Human Rights Council (HRC).
"According to various estimates, between 1,500 and 2,000 UOC churches have been seized between 2022 and 2026. These seizures are often accompanied by violence and mass beatings of believers and clergy," he said.
Melekh added that a decision by Vladimir Zelensky’s office to designate the Kiev Metropolitanate as being "affiliated" with the Russian Orthodox Church could prompt regional authorities to terminate agreements with UOC dioceses governing their use of historic state-owned churches and monasteries. "This could result in the forced confiscation of up to 3,000 historic churches and monasteries across Ukraine," he said.
He stressed that "controlled chaos" had been created within Ukrainian Orthodoxy, facilitating the violent seizure of churches and monasteries and the illegal re-registration of religious communities under the guise of "voluntary transitions."
"The authorities are trying to conceal these facts and act primarily through indirect means. Members of radical nationalist groups, who are effectively guaranteed immunity from prosecution for violating the law, are being involved in the reprisals," he said.