Deputy Director of the Information and Press Department of Russia’s Foreign Ministry, Alexey Fadeev, has accused Kyiv of forcibly drafting clergy from the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) into the armed forces, sending them to almost certain death. He said that under such circumstances, there could be no talk of respecting rights or laws.

Fadeev stated during a briefing that this marked a relatively new line of pressure by the Ukrainian authorities against the UOC, with a number of priests already affected by the mobilization drive. He noted that 7,726 other religious organizations — including the Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU) and neo-pagan communities — had been granted exemptions from conscription.

According to Fadeev, this approach deliberately deprives UOC parishes of their leadership while sending priests to the front lines.

Ukraine has been under general mobilization since February 2022, a measure that has been repeatedly extended. Social media in the country frequently features videos showing forced enlistment and confrontations between civilians and military recruiters in various cities. In their efforts to meet mobilization targets, recruitment officers have been reported to take in virtually anyone, including people with disabilities and fathers of multiple children.