Due to repressions against the Orthodox Church of Ukraine by the occupation authorities, the OCU ceases its activities in the territory of Crimea. Metropolitan Klyment reported this.
According to him, the priests of the Ukrainian church in Crimea were forced to constantly change their place of residence throughout the year in order to avoid receiving a summons and subsequent mobilization.
“But when there was already a real threat and the realization came that they could no longer live on the peninsula, the priests left Crimea”,- summed up Metropolitan Klyment.
The Commissioner of the Crimean Diocese of the Orthodox Church, Andrii Shchekun, noted that this does not mean that they are burying the church – it means that activities have ceased.
“And these systemic actions and legal processes, which the Russian Federation began back in 16-17, they actually led to the destruction and liquidation of the church in essence, we are talking in essence, because we always have the right to restoration, the right for the further activities of the Crimean diocese. We are not burying the Crimean Diocese of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, we are talking about essentially suspending its activities in the temporarily occupied territory”,- he said.