Ministry of Culture reinstates Ostapenko as director of Lavra reserve
Ostapenko returned to the Lavra reserve. Photo: OCU
On January 15, 2026, Minister of Culture Tetiana Berezhna dismissed Svitlana Kotliarevska from her post as acting director of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra National Preserve and returned Maksym Ostapenko to the leadership – he had held this position before Kotliarevska.
The Ministry of Culture did not disclose the reasons for Kotliarevska’s dismissal. The tasks set for Ostapenko include: “restoring the work of the Reserve and supporting the team, systematic work to safeguard the heritage that is part of Ukraine’s national security. As well as strengthening the institution’s capacity and developing its scholarly and museum work.”
Kotliarevska wrote on Facebook that she is proud of her “synergy” with Dumenko: “Through insane effort and hard work, we fought to achieve a historic event – the prayer service of clergy led by Metropolitan Epifaniy in the Far Caves and later in the Near Caves, at the relics of the Venerable Fathers.”
According to her, the Reserve and the OCU “side by side carried out a set of measures to preserve the remains of the saints in the Near and Far Caves.” The official claimed that among the people this is called the “drying of the relics of the Venerable Ones.”
She also emphasized that under her leadership the Reserve “made a quantum leap and succeeded in having the court reject all baseless motions by which the UOC tried to drag out the process.”
Earlier, the UOJ wrote that after Ostapenko’s dismissal in 2025, the Ministry of Culture criticized his work at the Reserve.
Read also
Vinnytsia authorities discuss safety of Hasidic pilgrims traveling to Uman
More than 30,000 Jewish pilgrims are expected to pass through the region for Rosh Hashanah.
Rivne hierarch rejects media claims over soldier’s funeral
The Rivne Eparchy called on journalists to stop cynically manipulating the memory of fallen Ukrainian defenders.
Lviv police open case against man for desecrating Statue of Virgin Mary
In Lviv, a 46-year-old local resident defaced a statue of the Virgin Mary with a black marker and damaged flowers at its base.
OCU cleric: UOC hard to ban as there is no evidence of ties to Moscow
An OCU cleric says the state needs to create a separate body in order to ban the UOC.
Kamianets-Podilskyi Icon-Painting School completes admissions campaign
The admissions committee recommended eight applicants for enrollment in the first year.
Patriarch Bartholomew accuses Serbian and Russian Churches of ingratitude
The head of the Ecumenical Patriarchate said his Church had “diminished itself” by granting autocephaly, only to receive a “cup of ingratitude” in return.