Ukraine must have its own faith: Poroshenko's party lays out peace terms

Poroshenko and Dumenko. Photo: TASS

Following a meeting of its parliamentary faction, the Petro Poroshenko European Solidarity party stated that issues of religious faith and church policy cannot be subject to compromise or substantive agreements in international negotiations.

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The party stressed that the concept of “Army. Language. Faith.” remains a fundamental pillar of Ukrainian statehood. According to its lawmakers, freedom of religion and the country’s spiritual sphere are matters of national sovereignty. “They cannot be used as bargaining chips in domestic politics, international negotiations, or any agreements with the aggressor state.”

Party representatives said that any peace agreements must not become a “capitulation of identity” and that after the war, Ukraine must remain a country “with its own Army, its own Language, its own Faith.” The faction also supported the state’s right to intervene and take action against organizations that the party describes as “controlled by the Kremlin.”

Earlier, the UOJ reported that European Solidarity MP Oleksii Honcharenko had called for easing pressure on the UOC in the interest of achieving peace, adding that such an approach would itself embody Poroshenko's slogan "Army, Language, Faith!"

Ukraine must have its own faith: Poroshenko's party lays out peace terms