Romanian delegation visits UOC dean hospitalized in Bukovyna

Archpriest Vasyl Kovalchuk. Photo: Chernivtsi Eparchy

A Romanian delegation visited Archpriest Vasyl Kovalchuk, the dean of Storozhynets District of the Chernivtsi-Bukovyna Eparchy of the UOC, in the hospital, where he was hospitalized after SBU searches. The eparchial press service reported the visit on the evening of March 6, 2025.

"The Secretary for Religious Affairs of Romania, the Ambassador, and the Consul held negotiations with the hospitalized dean, Father Vasyl Kovalchuk, directly in his hospital room," the Chernivtsi Eparchy stated.

As previously reported by the UOJ, the UOC dean in Bukovyna was hospitalized in a pre-infarction state following searches conducted by the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU). According to Dozor, law enforcement officers acted on a denunciation by the controversial OCU cleric Roman Hryshchuk, who has been systematically "transferring" UOC churches in Bukovyna to the Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU).

Additionally, on March 6, Archpriest Vasyl Kovalchuk was supposed to meet with Ciprian Olinici, Romania’s State Secretary for Religious Affairs, to discuss the seizures of UOC churches in Bukovyna.

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