Moscow must understand that the forced dissolution of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine in Crimea will have identical consequences for the Russian Orthodox Church in mainland Ukraine (known as the Ukrainian Orthodox Church – Moscow Patriarchate), Archbishop Klyment, head of the beleaguered Church in Crimea has said.
The archbishop was commenting on a vital, albeit extremely belated, resolution passed by Ukraine’s Cabinet of Ministers at the beginning of March. While Crimea is occupied, this transfers the Cathedral of Ss. Volodymyr and Olha in Symferopol to state ownership.