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President comments on cancelled meeting with UOC (MP): Moscow’s scenario

14.11.2018, 09:40
President's team called such behavior of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate) unacceptable because the Head of State deliberately proposed a neutral territory for the meeting. “This is their choice. So they showed that they continue their way not with Ukraine, but with Russia,” said a representative of President's Administration in an interview for BBC News Ukraine.

President's team called such behavior of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate) unacceptable because the Head of State deliberately proposed a neutral territory for the meeting. “This is their choice. So they showed that they continue their way not with Ukraine, but with Russia,” said a representative of President's Administration in an interview for BBC News Ukraine.

He added that Petro Poroshenko had already had a telephone conversation with Metropolitan Onufriy in this regard, during which he negatively responded to such behavior of the UOC (MP). "Definitely, this was obnoxious behaviour,” added the interlocutor.

The Presidential Administration told ВВС News that the UOC (MP) did not want a dialogue, but was looking for a pretext to refuse it.

“A large part of the hierarchs of the UOC (MP) embarked on a search for explanations not to come to the meeting, like, the place is not suitable,” said the Administration rep.

“Neither the language of ultimatum nor a meeting of the Synod according to the scenario, probably schemed by Moscow, can ever undermine the process of creating the Ukrainian Local Orthodox Church,” the AP commented and stressed that the process of autocephaly is supported by an absolute majority of Ukrainian citizens.

According to them, the President invited the bishops of the UOC (MP) to dialogue, so that they could hear the information on talks with Patriarch Bartholomew and his readiness to promote the Unification Council of the Orthodox Church in Ukraine.

“The President of Ukraine is ready for dialogue. The doors of the Ukrainian House remain open,” the Presidential Administration informed. As RISU has reported, instead of meeting with the President, scheduled for 14:00 November 13 at Ukrainian House, the bishops of the UOC (MP) convened the Council of Bishops. Then the bishops of the UOC (MP) claimed their readiness to meet with the President of Ukraine, but on the church territory, in particular, on the territory of the Kyiv Pechersk Lavra. This was said in the statement of the Hierarchical Council of the UOC (MP). The Council of Bishops of the UOC (MP) reminded that it considers the decision of the Holy Synod of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of October 11, 2018 concerning the Ukrainian church question to be invalid.