PRESIDENT: HAVING RECEIVED THE AUTOCEPHALY OF THE UKRAINIAN ORTHODOX CHURCH, WE WILL GET BACK TO THE ORIGINS OF OUR HISTORY

  Religious Information Service of Ukraine

President Petro Poroshenko emphasizes that with the issue of granting the Tomos of Autocephaly to the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, Ukraine wants to withstand the right to its own independent church.

"We are not against anyone. Take the church - every country must have its own. It turns out that only Ukraine, Belarus and Moldova do not have such a right. Before the beginning of the war with Russia, internal struggles within the Orthodox Church could be acceptable. But after the Russian aggression - no more. The Russian Orthodox Church acts under the instructions of Russia," the Head of State said in an interview to Focus, informs press service of the president.

“I hope that my appeal to Patriarch Bartholomew will yield positive results and give us the right to our own autocephalous church. Ukrainian church was established 1000 years ago in Constantinople. We just return to our origins,” Petro Poroshenko said.

The President emphasizes that it is important for the independence of Ukraine, because Ukrainians will finally have the right to determine the ecclesiastical hierarchy and what Patriarch to pray for.

"We hate the stereotype, as if we are part of the Soviet or Russian empire. Our past is related to Europe. We are trying to get back to the European family right now. This applies not only to western but also to central Ukraine. In 2013, only 35% of respondents supported Europe, 16% - the idea of NATO membership. Currently, 70% are for the EU, 56% are for NATO," the Head of State emphasized.