The Institute for the Study of War (ISW) reports that Russian occupation authorities continue to forcefully integrate dioceses of the Russian-aligned Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate (UOC MP) in occupied Zaporizhzhia Oblast into the Russian Orthodox Church (ROC), “demonstrating the integral connection of the ROC with the Russian state.”
Zaporizhzhia Oblast occupation official Vladimir Rogov claimed that the Russian Bishop of Bronnitsky, Luka, held the first liturgy of the Russian Orthodox Church in Berdiansk Cathedral, which the Russian Orthodox Church had taken control over on 16 May.
Rogov claimed that Russian Orthodox Church Head Patriarch Kirill appointed Bishop of Bronnitsky Luka as head of the Berdiansk and Prymorsk dioceses of the ROC. The Berdiansk and Prymorsk dioceses were previously part of the Russian-affiliated UOC MP, and their forced integration with the ROC emphasizes the close relationship between the ROC and the Russian state.
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