On Friday, December 13, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Andriy Sybiha met at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs with a delegation of members of the Permanent Synod of the UGCC led by the Head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, His Beatitude Sviatoslav.

The Foreign Minister expressed his gratitude to the UGCC for the spiritual care of Ukrainian Christians abroad. 

The key issue of the meeting was the joint counteraction to the attempts of the RF to spiritual seize the Ukrainian identity, which is carried out by the Russian aggression in Ukraine and in the world.

“Your pastoral care is an extremely important contribution to the resilience of Ukrainians. For us, all Ukrainians in the world are a unified entity. And I am grateful for the role of the Сhurch in uniting our people abroad,” the Foreign Minister said.

Andriy Sybiha emphasized the importance of using the moral authority of the Church in the issues of releasing Ukrainian prisoners of war and civilians, and in particular children deported by Russia. 

The Foreign Minister emphasized the unique role of the Church in maintaining the national identity of Ukrainians abroad. 

His Beatitude Sviatoslav, in turn, noted that the Permanent Synod of the UGCC “is ready to work in symphony with the diplomatic institutions of Ukraine.”

The participants paid special attention to further supporting the spiritual needs of Ukrainian Christians abroad as an important element in strengthening the ties of Ukrainians with their Homeland.