Head of SBU сlaims that EU has imposed sanctions against UOC

Head of the SBU V. Maliuk. Photo: TSN

Head of the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) Vasyl Maliuk stated in a comment to Livyi Bereh that the European Union has allegedly imposed certain sanctions against the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC).

“These [sanctions] have been implemented both in Europe and in Ukraine. But this work continues. In particular, the initiator is the Czech Republic. And we have worked on this together with our Czech colleagues. I continue this work. It is indeed a top-priority direction. At the same time, we remain committed to the principle of freedom of conscience and religion. There can be no doubts about that… If the 'ears' of Russian intelligence services are visible there, we will act accordingly,” Maliuk stated.

According to the LB editorial team, Maliuk was commenting on information that “the latest sanctions imposed by the National Security and Defense Council (NSDC) against certain individuals were introduced, among other reasons, due to identified cases of financing public organizations in the EU that engage in anti-Ukrainian activities and are linked to Russians, including religious communities.”

“As soon as there are sufficient grounds, we will implement this,” Maliuk said when asked whether such work could serve as a basis for introducing new NSDC sanctions.

Earlier, the UOJ reported that, according to German theologian Thomas Bremer, Ukrainian authorities are also taking measures against the UOC abroad.

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