Zelensky Targets Renowned Human Rights Attorney Robert Amsterdam, Legal Representative of UOC

Amsterdam at the Summit for Religious Freedom in the U.S. [CREDIT: Amsterdam's X page}

KYIV—On the morning of June 11, 2025, Ukrainian media reported the government of Ukraine's intent to prosecute Robert Amsterdam, head of the renowned international human rights firm Amsterdam & Partners LLP, citing collaboration with former Ukrainian MP Vadim Novinsky and "destabilizing the religious situation."

Amsterdam has been representing the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) in raising awareness of the ongoing persecution it has suffered at the hands of the Ukrainian government. The government alleges that by assisting an American lobbyist in traveling to Kyiv to discuss the protection of the UOC and ways to counteract the implementation of the Law banning the UOC, Amsterdam is "destabilizing the religious situation."

In order to destabilize the socio-political processes in Ukraine during the military aggression of the Russian Federation, in February 2024, following the instructions of Vadim Novinsky, PERSON_4 (presumably, this is one of Novinsky’s associates – Ed. ), using a resource under his control, ensured the stay and activity in Kyiv of a lobbyist in matters of protection of the UOC-MP, a resident of the United States, organized meetings in Kyiv with a Russian citizen to discuss issues of protecting the interests of the Russian church in Ukraine and ways to counteract the adoption of draft law No. 83737 [...draft law No. 8371, both are mentioned in the statement - Ed. “On the prohibition of activities of religious organizations associated with the Russian Federation in Ukraine... as well as the involvement of domestic and foreign media and media persons in such activities to assist the information policy of the aggressor state to discredit Ukraine before international partners.””

The Ukrainian government is of the opinion that using activists and police to seize the churches of its citizens is not destabilizing the socio-political situation, only talking about it; foreign media personnel who report on the persecution are likewise deemed to be "assist[ing] the information policy of the aggressor state to discredit Ukraine before international partners."

Amsterdam previously appeared on Tucker Carlson's show, where he claimed that the government of Ukraine had pressured the US Government to launch an investigation of Amsterdam for defending the UOC. According to Amsterdam, the government of Ukraine has prevented him from visiting his clients in Ukraine, launching investigations against him simply to complicate the defense of his client and attempt to discredit his work.

Robert Amsterdam previously represented the political opponents of Russian President Vladimir Putin; he is banned from entering the Russian Federation. 

Today I am under criminal prosecution in Ukraine. What even Putin did not do to me, Zelensky is doing today. And all because I defend the Ukrainian Orthodox Church. In Putin’s case, I defended his political opponents. But in the case of Zelensky, I am defending the church, and they have opened a criminal case against me.

Previously, Amsterdam had lobbied members of the Verkhovna Rada's Committee for Humanitarian Policy surrounding the vote for bill No. 8371 (an iteration of the Law banning the UOC). According to the Ukrainian press, the members retaliated by appealing to the SBU to intervene and pressure the CIA to do likewise.

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