The Supreme Court of Ukraine has issued a final ruling transferring the Assumption Cathedral in Kaniv, Cherkasy region, previously held by the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC), to state ownership. This was announced by Svetlana Chubenko, acting press secretary of the regional prosecutor's office, as reported by RIA Novosti.

On March 27, the Office of the Prosecutor General of Ukraine declared that the court deemed the UOC's acquisition of the cathedral in 2003 illegal. The Kaniv City Council had allowed the UOC to register the cathedral as its property, but the court ruled that this historic site should belong to the state, representing the interests of the Ukrainian people.

Chubenko highlighted that the Supreme Court supported the prosecution's arguments and upheld the decisions of lower courts, ordering the return of the building to state ownership following a lawsuit from the Smila District Prosecutor's Office.

Amid escalating religious conflicts, there have been reports of attempts to seize UOC churches by representatives of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU) in Kyiv and other regions. For instance, parishioners of the Pokrovsky Church in Boyarka, Kyiv region, have called on residents to protect the church from similar seizures.

Tensions surrounding the UOC in Ukraine continue to escalate, with authorities increasing pressure on the church, citing its ties to Russia. The Ukrainian Parliament has passed a bill in its first reading that would ban the activities of the UOC nationwide. Some UOC clergy members have been sanctioned, and the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) has conducted searches in UOC churches and monasteries, seeking evidence of "anti-Ukrainian activities."

Photo: © Sergii Zarev / Фотобанк Лори