Head of Ternopil region: Pochaiv Lavra belongs to the believers of UOC

The police carried out a check on the territory of the Pochaiv Lavra, where a large number of refugees are now located, 0352.ua reports.

“We had a meeting with the rector, we checked everyone who is now based on the territory of the shrine; we checked all the parishioners in the hostels, because there are a lot of refugees. Checkpoints have been placed around the Lavra, we are monitoring all those who arrive and those who leave. In general, with regard to the Church of the Moscow Patriarchate, now we have no information that there is any threat to the state from these religious institutions. However, we keep the situation under control,” said Alexander Bogomol, head of the regional police department.

He urged everyone who has information about the preparation of provocations, about people who may work against Ukraine, about suspicious people with weapons, to immediately contact the police and the SBU.

Regional leaders also advised residents to remain calm and not create tension around the Pochaiv Lavra.

“We are not barbarians, we live in a civilized world. We are not Russia to take something by force. This issue should be resolved in accordance with the current legislation,” stressed the head of the Ternopil Regional State Administration Vladimir Trush.

Chairman of the regional council Mikhail Golovko urged the "hot heads" to cool down a bit.

“The issue with the Moscow Church has actually been resolved. They have no other choice but to move away from Moscow and go over to the Ukrainian side. Our Pochaiv Lavra belongs to the Ukrainian people. I urge everyone to remain calm,” the head of the regional council said.

The Pochaiv Lavra opened a new site to replace the blocked one.

Earlier, the UOJ reported that the Holy Dormition Pochaiv Lavra refuted the statement of MPs about the monastery's cooperation with Russian special services.