AFU comments on DESS document regarding draft exemption of clergy

Clergy and military ID. photo: pomisna.info, UNIAN

The Command of the Land Forces of the AFU stated that it supports the document of the State Service for Ethnopolitics and Freedom of Conscience (DESS) on the draft exemption of clergy, but "emphasizes that mobilization needs remain a priority for ensuring the country's defense capability". "The reservation procedure should not create obstacles for staffing military formations," the statement said.

The command stated that "the clergy exemtion should be carried out exclusively under the condition of fulfilling all the requirements defined by DESS."

The AFU called on all religious organizations included in the DESS document to "approach the exemption process responsibly, ensuring the accuracy of the provided information and compliance with legislative norms".

It should be recalled that DESS published a list of communities whose clergy will be reserved. The document contains 7726 names. Religious organizations of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) were excluded from the list by the State Ethnopolitics Service. Officials justified the exclusion of UOC structures from the reservation by applying the so-called "law on renaming" of December 20, 2018, No. 2662-VIII.

Earlier, the UOJ wrote that DESS published a list of communities whose clergy will be reserved.

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