MOSCOW, April 19. /TASS/. Kiev has relied a lot on radical nationalist groups for gang-style takeovers of religious property in its crackdown on the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church, the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a report on Wednesday.

"A notable role in the onslaught on the Ukrainian Orthodox Church has been assigned to organized groups of radical nationalists that take over churches in a thuggish manner. At the same time, UPC parishes become targets of numerous ‘independent’ looters and rioters that are motivated in their raids by the ideological struggle against ‘invaders’ and their ‘spiritual minions.’ Video footage from these events is circulating on Ukrainian social networks, accompanied by calls to follow these examples," the ministry said in the report on human rights in Ukraine.

"In addition to using violence and intimidation, the radicals, together with adherents of the OCU, are actively organizing acts of vandalism and provocations against churches and priests of the canonical church," the report said.

"Slanderous rumors are being spread about the rectors of the parishes and the hierarchy of the UOC, and numerous false stories are being published on social networks saying that church hierarchs are allegedly assisting the Russian armed forces. Every day, the Ukrainian police and the Security Service of Ukraine accuse UOC churches of storing weapons, ammunition and provisions for the ‘aggressor.’ Based on such ‘arguments,’ Ukrainian politicians and officials are calling for a ban on the UOC and stripping it of its property," the ministry said.