The Claim
An X/Twitter post by US Rep Anna Paulina Luna falsely claims that the Ukrainian government under Zelensky has banned The Orthodox Church in Ukraine altogether and has used this Russian government aligned disinformation to justify a termination of US military aid to Ukraine.
The Facts:
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No Ukrainian Ban on Orthodoxy:
The Ukrainian government has not banned the Orthodox Church or the Orthodox faith. Ukrainian legislation targets religious organizations that are formally subordinate to the Moscow Patriarchate, which has long-standing institutional ties to the Kremlin. -
Legal and Transparent Process:
In August 2024, Ukraine’s Verkhovna Rada passed the law titled “On the Protection of the Constitutional Order in the Field of Activities of Religious Organizations.” President Zelensky signed it into law in September 2024. It grants the state authority to ban religious institutions found to be affiliated with aggressor states—specifically Russia. -
ROC’s Role in Russian Hybrid Warfare:
The Russian Orthodox Church has played a well-documented role in promoting Kremlin propaganda, justifying the war on Ukraine, and spreading anti-Western conspiracy narratives. The ROC is closely aligned with Russian state security services and has supported Russia’s full-scale invasion since 2022.
Narrative Context:
This disinformation aligns with a long-running Kremlin propaganda campaign that frames Ukraine as anti-religious and authoritarian. The Russian Orthodox Church has been weaponized to present Moscow as a defender of “traditional values” and spiritual purity against a supposedly decadent and godless West. In this narrative, Ukraine is cast as a U.S.-controlled state that represses religion and democracy—justifying Russia’s aggression.
Statements like Rep. Luna’s amplify these narratives—intentionally or not—and risk eroding bipartisan support for Ukraine by invoking distorted cultural and religious anxieties.