Zelensky: Carlson can't accuse Kyiv of persecution, he never visited Ukraine

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky. Photo: a screenshot from This Week on Capitol Hill program

Volodymyr Zelensky stated that American journalist Tucker Carlson should not accuse the Ukrainian authorities of persecuting Christians because he has never been to Ukraine and does not know what is happening there. He made these remarks in an interview with Tony Perkins, host of This Week on Capitol Hill. The episode was released on October 31, 2026.

Perkins reminded Zelensky that Carlson and others had accused the Ukrainian government of persecuting Christians and asked him to respond to these allegations.

"Tucker Carlson and other such guys they I think have never been to Ukraine how he can discuss what's going on in Ukraine and to speak about what's going on with the with religious people in Ukraine?" Zelensky responded with a question of his own.

The President did not explain why information about the persecution of Christians must be obtained exclusively by being physically present in the country.

According to Zelensky, "in Ukraine, we are very free" because the country has the largest council of religious institutions in Europe.

He said that he meets with members of the organization every month at the Presidential Office or can "come to different churches".

"We always togather discuss all the questions... We manage all the problems together. Yes. Christians, Jewish people. Yes, we have a lot of Catholic churches and also Muslims – we all sit together in one room, manage all these problems and discuss them," he noted.

Zelensky did not explain why representatives of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) are never present in that room or why the Church was excluded from the membership of the Ukrainian Council of Churches and Religious Organizations (UCCRO) in the first place.

According to Zelensky, "this man, Tucker, does not know what is going on in Ukraine."

"But he can come and see what is is going on, what has been destroyed by Russia, and what is the attitude to different religions and nationalities," Zelensky said.

Perkins added that during his visit to Ukraine, he had met with UCCRO members and immediately understood that there was "freedom of religion" in the country. Zelensky strongly agreed with him, adding that religious matters in Ukraine are not decided by "five or ten people," but by thousands.

"No, this is the will of the people. That is why we come together very often. And it's about thousands of people. We stay together and really respect each other," the President assured him.

At the same time, Zelensky's response made no mention whatsoever of the UOC, even though Carlson's allegations primarily concern the situation of this Church.

It should be recalled that Carlson has repeatedly accused Zelensky of persecuting UOC clergy and believers. For example, in 2024, he stated that the Ukrainian authorities were busy throwing priests in jails.

Read also