Lithuania bans Patriarch Kirill from entering

According to the Lithuanian Ministry of Internal Affairs, the primate of the Russian Orthodox Church is Putin's closest ally and one of the most active supporters of the "war against Ukraine."Earlier, Lithuania also proposed to include the patriarch in the EU sanctions list Patriarch Kirill

Lithuania has banned the Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church (ROC), Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Rus', from entering the country until June 23, 2027, 15min reports, citing a statement by the Lithuanian Ministry of Internal Affairs.

According to the ministry, the patriarch is included in the sanctions list because of "conscious denial of the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Ukraine, justification and support for Russia's aggressive actions that grossly violate the norms and principles of international law."

“Patriarch Kirill, a close associate of Vladimir Putin, is one of the most active supporters of the war against Ukraine, who has repeatedly spoken positively in public regarding the ongoing Russian aggression,” the department said.

RBC sent a request to the Department for External Church Relations of the Moscow Patriarchate and asked for a comment from the Synodal Department for Church Relations with Society and the Media.

Canada, following Britain, imposed sanctions against Patriarch Kirill Politics

Patriarch Kirill, after the start of the Russian special operation in Ukraine, touched upon the topic of hostilities in several of his sermons. He, among other things, said that the peoples of Russia and Ukraine are a single whole, which external forces are trying to divide. Also, according to him, Russia never attacked other countries, but "only defended its borders."

After that, sanctions were imposed on him by Canada and the United Kingdom. At the same time, the head of the Russian Orthodox Church did not fall under EU sanctions. Lithuania proposed to include it in the sanctions list at the end of April, but it was not possible to agree on the measure: as Bloomberg reported, Hungary opposed it.

The official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova, then stated that the plans for restrictions against the head of the Russian Orthodox Church were “infernal” and testified to the helplessness and fear of the EU.

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