The press secretary of the Russian president, Dmitry Peskov, during a conversation with reporters, said that Kyiv, by illegal encroachments on the Orthodox Church, reinforces the fidelity of the decision to conduct a special military operation (SVO) of Russia in Ukraine.

“The Kiev regime, with these illegal actions, encroachments on the church, once again demonstrates its character,” the Kremlin spokesman said.

According to Peskov, it is this “character” that must be stopped following the results of the SVO.

“This once again proves and shows that everything that we all do is absolutely correct,” he concluded.

Earlier, Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Rus' called for preventing the forced closure of the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra, stressing that this would lead to a violation of the rights of millions of Ukrainians to freedom of religion, including those guaranteed by the Constitution of Ukraine and the UN Charter. The patriarch compared the ultimatum of the Ukrainian authorities to the Lavra with the persecution of faith in the days of the Soviet Union.