The Mayor of Kherson Volodymyr Mykolayenko believes the head of the Russian Orthodox Church Patriarch Kirill should drop Kherson from his travel plans, reports Expreso TV, June 18, citing the mayor's press service.
"We support the development of spirituality in Kherson, but I'm afraid that right now Patriarch Kirill has nothing to do with spirituality. In short, Mr. Kirill, nobody is waiting for you here. To elaborate, we know how much protection Mr. Patriarch requires. Kherson has a population of only 350,000, and it would be difficult to assign half of them as guards. Moreover, our city executive committee has lost its Photoshop license, so it would be difficult to add the required flocks to Patriarch Kirill's photos." Mikolayenko said.
"I'd also like to note that, as the head of the Russian Orthodox Church, Mr. Kirill is blessing Russian aggression against our country and is the main promoter of the imaginary "Russian World" for which Chechens and Russians are dying in eastern Ukraine. Kherson is a peaceful and Ukrainian city, and we really do not want to see an aggressor in our land," Mykolayenko concluded..
On Thursday, June 19, the Director of the Department for Religious and Ethnic Affairs at the Ministry of Culture of Ukraine, Volodymyr Yushkevych, stated that Patriarch Kirill was not welcome in Ukraine as long as Russia continues its aggression against Ukraine and occupies territory seized from the country.
As widely reported in mass media, there has been some discussion that events commemorating the Baptism of Kyivan Rus in July would be transferred from Kyiv to Kherson, with a possible visit by Patriarch Kirill.
Translation: Anna Mostovych
