During a Christmas church service, Russian leader Vladimir Putin said that Russian troops are allegedly carrying out a "holy mission" in Ukraine "on God’s orders." Ukraine's Center for Countering Disinformation says he used the religious service as yet another tool to justify Russia’s war against Ukraine.
“During the Christmas service, Putin stated that Russian soldiers are carrying out a ‘holy mission’ to defend the fatherland ‘on God’s orders,’” the Center emphasized.
In effect, the war was presented not as a political decision by the Kremlin, but as a sacred, divinely sanctioned duty.
Militarized Christmas and a "holy war"
The Center for Countering Disinformation stresses that this is a systematic Kremlin propaganda line, portraying the war against Ukraine as “sacred.”
The fusion of religion, state ideology, and the military points to the total militarization of Russian society.
“While Christmas around the world remains a holiday of peace, love, and family, Putin turns it into an instrument of war propaganda,” the Center noted.
Instead of calls for reconciliation, there is glorification of war; instead of family warmth, demonstrative closeness to the army.
“Putin’s militarized Christmas once again shows that the Kremlin is preparing Russian society for a long war,” the Center concluded.
Religious manipulation in the West and Russia’s real crimes
Earlier, Ukraine banned the activities of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate, supported by Putin, due to its direct ties to Russia. In response, Russia is promoting a narrative about the alleged"persecution of Christians in Ukraine" in the West.
Moscow spends significant resources on lobbyists who organize meetings of so-called “religious representatives of Russia” in the US Congress and the White House.
The goal is to create the impression that supporting Ukraine allegedly contradicts “American values,” despite the fact that military assistance enables Ukrainians to defend themselves against Russian aggression.
