The court rejected the claim of the UOC to terminate the lease agreement for the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra

The court rejected the claim of the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) to declare the termination of the lease agreement for the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra invalid. This was stated by the Minister of Culture of Ukraine Oleksandr Tkachenko in his Telegram channel.

“The court refused to secure the claim in case No. 910/4552/23 from the UOC to the National Reserve “Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra” to invalidate the transaction on the unilateral refusal of the contract, application,” the message says.

March 10, the new leadership of the national reserve “Kiev-Pechersk Lavra” obligated representatives of the UOC to leave the territory and buildings of the Lavra until March 29 due to the termination of the contract. At the same time, the Ministry of Culture of Ukraine stated that the monks of the UOC could remain in the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra if they transferred to the schismatic Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU). After that, Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus’ Kirill named the situation around the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra with a blatant violation of the rights and freedoms of believers in Ukraine and compared the ultimatum with “persecution of faith in times of godlessness.”

On March 29, it became known that the ministers of the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra filed a lawsuit in the court of Ukraine to challenge the termination of the lease. According to the lawyer of the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra, Archpriest Nikita Chekman, the clergy have repeatedly appealed to the Ukrainian authorities to find out the results of the activities of the interdepartmental working group, which allegedly revealed violations by the monastery of the terms of the contract. In response, the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra was told that the information was classified “for official use”, and therefore could not be provided.

March 30, Press Secretary of the President of Russia Dmitry Peskov saidthat if the clergy are evicted from the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra, they themselves will decide on their actions, but in Russia, if necessary, they will be helped. “Certainly, I have no doubt that no one in Russia will remain indifferent to their future fate, if necessary,” he said.