Petrov, Roman2025-03-122025-03-122024Petrov R. Christian Orthodoxy between Geopolitics and International Law. How the War in Ukraine Divided the Orthodox Church / Roman Petrov // Zeitschrift fur Auslandisches Offentliches Recht und Volkerrecht. - 2024. - Vol. 84 (3). - P. 421-436. - https://doi.org/10.17104/0044-2348-2024-3-421https://doi.org/10.17104/0044-2348-2024-3-421https://ekmair.ukma.edu.ua/handle/123456789/33913The aim of this article is threefold. First, it scrutinises the historical and geopolitical reasons underlying the conflict between the Russian Orthodox Church and the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople over the issue of establishing an autocephalous Orthodox Church of Ukraine. Second, it highlights the Russian Orthodox Church’s alarming conformism and alliance with the authoritarian Putin regime in Russia. It illustrates that the Russian Orthodox Church became de facto the main ideological pillar of Russia’s brutal violations of international law and values of humanity in the war in Ukraine. This finalité made the Russian Orthodox Church act as a maleficent power (commentators use even stronger definition of ‘evil power’). Third, it studies the status of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate), which, due to its institutional connection to the Russian Orthodox Church, is seen as a national security threat to war-torn Ukraine. This contribution also examines if the prosecution of the Moscow-affiliated Ukrainian Orthodox Church may be considered a significant impediment to Ukraine’s integration into the European Union (EU). These cases provide a good illustration of the dilemma faced by the Orthodox Church in the context of the war in Ukraine. The Church can either serve the national interests and geopolitical realities of its patron state or promote eternal Christian values of humanity, peace and non-violence at the expense of its reputation and well-being. The solution might look obvious but is in fact extremely difficult since no Christian church in the world can successfully confront totalitarian/autocratic regimes that openly disregard the fundamentals of international law and common values of humanity.enRussia’s invasion of UkraineAutocephalous Orthodox Church of UkraineCatholic parishes in UkraineRussian Orthodox ChurchUkrainian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate)Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinoplenational security interestsprinciples of international and European lawUkraine’s integration into the European Union (EU)articleArticle