ALMATY: A popular Kazakh cleric opposed to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine said Thursday he was attempting to start a new church independent of Moscow, after the Russian Orthodox Church defrocked him over his criticism of the Kremlin.
The row has become another headache for Russia, which has already seen other former Soviet states cut ties with the Russian Orthodox church.
Vladimir Vorontsov, a former priest at the Moscow-governed Orthodox Church of Kazakhstan, was dismissed last year after describing the war in Ukraine as a fratricidal “sin” on social media. He also called for Kazakhstan to “fence itself off” from Russia.
Vorontsov said Thursday he was collecting signatures to start a new church outside of Moscow’s orbit which he would send to the Patriarchate of Constantinople, the highest governing authority for the Orthodox Church outside of Moscow.
“I plan to send this letter next week,” he told AFP.
