Political analyst: PO is having second thoughts about crackdown on UOC

Kost Bondarenko. Photo: Bondarenko's YouTube channel

In an interview with blogger Oleksandr Shelest, political analyst Kost Bondarenko stated that Ukrainian authorities have eased up on their crackdown against the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC).

“I think the government is now trying to figure out what to do with the UOC, especially since there are clear signals coming from the United States,” Bondarenko said, noting that U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance “has repeatedly spoken out against the persecution of any religious denomination, including the UOC.”

“That’s why I believe the UOC has now been given a bit of a breather,” he added.

“We still hear daily reports of churches being seized and other incidents. But that intense wave of harsh pressure we saw last year and the year before is no longer present. I think some people in the President’s Office are starting to wonder whether it’s really worth it,” Bondarenko remarked.

He also emphasized that the UOC’s international legal representative, Bob Amsterdam, “has very close personal ties with J.D. Vance.”

“That means any such incident will immediately land on the vice president’s desk,” Bondarenko concluded.

Earlier, the UOJ reported that Bob Amsterdam congratulated James Vance on his election as U.S. Vice President and reposted his speech in defense of the UOC.

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