President Poroshenko: Every country has the right to an independent church

In an interview to the Serbian TV channel RTS, President Petro Poroshenko stressed that every country has the right to an independent church and urged the world to support Ukraine in the provision of the autocephaly to the Orthodox Church, reports Official website.

“Every country has the right to an independent church. On July 28, we will mark the 1030th anniversary of Christianization of Ukraine. That’s when the Ukrainian church was created. Ukraine has a Mother Church - Constantinople. And then Ukraine was a “mother” for the Russian Orthodox Church. Not vice versa. And today, Russia wants to prevent us from having an independent church. Russian Church is a Church of an aggressor country. Ukrainian Church is a Church for Ukrainians. There is a big difference.” the Head of State noted.

The President noted that the creation of an independent Church was supported by more than half of Ukrainians.

"I hope that with the help of God we will receive autocephaly of the Ukrainian Church. The support of others means a lot for us in this issue," the Head of State emphasized.