Dumenko Assures U.S. Diplomat That Persecution of UOC Is 'Russian Disinformation'

U.S. diplomat Julie Davis meets with Dumenko and Zoria. Photo: OCU

KYIV — On July 29, 2025, the head of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU), Serhii Petrovych Dumenko (also known as “Metropolitan Epiphany”), met with Julie Davis, the U.S. Chargé d’Affaires in Ukraine. Ivan Zoria and staff members of the U.S. Embassy were also present at the meeting.

According to reports, “the parties discussed issues of ensuring freedom of religion in Ukraine and the aggressor state’s attempts to use religious organizations in its hybrid war against our country.”

Dumenko and Zoria paid particular attention to the law banning the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC). They also assured Davis that all reports of persecution of the UOC are “Russian disinformation campaigns aimed at creating a false impression of alleged 'religious persecution’ in Ukraine.”

Previously, UOJ reported that a new report by Austria’s ABC Political Studies think tank has spotlighted what it describes as a sustained and systematic campaign by the Ukrainian government to pressure and marginalize the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC).

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