New Religious Legislation in Ukraine as a Response to Russian Aggression
Year: 2023

Although Ukrainian law guarantees a high level of religious freedom there has been more government interference since the 2014 Russian aggression. While national security was not a decisive motive for amending religious legislation before, this changed on 24 February 2022, when Russia decided on the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Responding to the invasion, the Ukrainian parliament has adopted a law requiring parishes of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate) to change their names.