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WCC delegation meets with Ukrainian government officials

July 18, 2026 · 1 min read

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Fri, 07/17/2026 - 17:32

An ecumenical delegation led by the World Council of Churches (WCC) met with representatives from the Ukrainian government, including deputy head of the Office of the President of Ukraine Olena Kovalska, and head of the State Religious Service Viktor Yelensky.

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Photo: Oleg Gavrysh

Kovalska acknowledged the importance of the solidarity visit and the role of WCC in walking with communities toward an end to the war.

She expressed gratitude to the WCC leadership for their ongoing work and support for decades in the field of unity, peace, reconciliation, and justice.

WCC general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay expressed appreciation for a frank and open conversation with government representatives on a variety of topics, including the current situation in Ukraine under the challenges of the war, peace initiatives, freedom of religion, state and church relations, political instability, and perceived corruption. “ The WCC will continue to speak against war and plead for dialogues for peace,” he said. “ Violence does not…

Source: World Council of Churches · Read the full story →

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Роман Лебедев

Peaceful negotiations are good, but when the text mentions “freedom of religion” along with representatives of the authorities, I immediately remember our canonical priests, who have been under pressure for years. I wonder if they discussed this directly with Elena Kovalskaya and Elensky?

Полина Беляева

Roman, you’re right, you often remember our canonical priests in such conversations. I wonder whether Pillay really directly mentioned the pressure on the UOC in his conversation with Kovalskaya and Yelensky, or whether everything remained at the level of general phrases about “freedom of religion.” In Yaroslavl we also monitor this, and WCC reports are usually so smooth that you won’t get any details.