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Raids at Kiev-Pechersk Lavra point to Kiev regime’s moral degradation — HRC

According to Kirill Vyshinsky, slogans to take over the oldest monastery were voiced during the Maidan events in 2004 and 2014

MOSCOW, November 22. /TASS/. Conducting raids at the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra monastery indicates a complete moral degradation of the Kiev regime, according to head of the permanent committee on international cooperation in the sphere of human rights of the Presidential Council for the Development of Civil Society and Human Rights (HRC) Kirill Vyshinsky.

"The image of the Lavra as a pillar of spirituality has always been a beacon for people during the hardest times. And when it is being brazenly dragged into politics and pummeled with absurd accusations, this testifies to a complete moral degradation of the Kiev regime. It is clear that the SBU wouldn’t have dared to do so without a presidential order," he said as quoted by the HRC press service on Tuesday.

Vyshinsky added that Ukrainian nationalists have always wanted to take possession of the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra. According to him, slogans to take over the oldest monastery were voiced during the Maidan events in 2004 and 2014.

"Yet I will reiterate that there have always been the devout who defended the Lavra from adversaries. I hope to God, there will be some now as well," he added.

Earlier, the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) confirmed it was conducting searches at the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra explaining them by the need to protect residents from provocations and terror attacks. On November 13, the SBU opened a criminal case over chants about Russia being performed at one of the churches of the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church. The SBU also reported that its members were inspecting the premises of two Ukrainian Orthodox monasteries in the Rovno region.

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