The Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate has blamed Russiaʼs attack on Petro Poroshenko and the Orthodox Church of Ukraine. This is stated in its statement of May 12.
"The facts of incitement to religious hatred and criminal acts against the Ukrainian Orthodox Church on the ground contain signs of sabotage and are the result of erroneous religious policies during the presidency of Petro Poroshenko and the destructive ideology of the so-called Orthodox Church of Ukraine. [...] We are convinced that such activities of the previous government and the Orthodox Church of Ukraine became one of the reasons for the military invasion of Ukraine," the Moscow Patriarchate said.
At the same time, the UOC-MP called for an end to the bloodshed and, by starting the negotiation process, to resolve the conflict with words, not weapons. "We are confident that Ukraine will survive and preserve its statehood," the church added.