Public dialogue “Russia’s genocidal war against Ukraine and religion: foreign and domestic political aspects”

17 April 2023

On April 18, 2023, a public dialogue, “Russia’s genocidal war against Ukraine and religion: foreign and domestic political aspects,” will be held in Kyiv.

 

When: April 18 at 11:00 a.m
Where: Ukrinform, 8/16, hall 2, B. Khmelnytskyi str.

The event will be broadcast on Ukrinform’s YouTube channel.

Organizers of the event: the National Holodomor-genocide Museum, the Center for Strategic Communications and Information Security, the public organization “Crimean Center for Business and Cultural Cooperation “Ukrainian House”, the editorial office of the newspaper “Krymska svitlytsia”, the humanitarian policy group of the Expert Network of the Crimean Platform, the Regional Council of Ukrainians of Crimea, Taurian humanitarian platform.

We invite researchers, analysts, representatives of state authorities, diplomatic corps and religious organizations to participate in the public dialogue.

The following topics are planned to be discussed at the event:

  • Use by Russia the religion as a tool for justifying, maintaining and implementing an aggressive and genocidal war against Ukraine;
  • quasi-religious rhetoric of representatives of the aggressor state as an element of anti-Ukrainian propaganda;
  • religious organizations of Ukraine and the problem of protection and restoration of sovereignty and territorial integrity of the state;
  • the responsibility of religious leaders and organizations for complicity in Russia’s aggressive and genocidal war against Ukraine;
  • peacemaking potential of religious diplomacy.

To mobilize its population to participate in the war against Ukraine and to try to justify this crime, Russia uses a wide range of instruments, among which religious organizations occupy a special place. The participants of the public dialogue will discuss the issue of the religious structures of the Russian Federation supporting aggression and genocide, the response of the international community to such actions, and the influence of the religious factor on the situation in Ukraine waging a defensive war. In particular, the analytical report “Support of Russia’s aggressive and genocidal war against Ukraine by “traditional” religious organizations of the Russian Federation will be presented (February 24, 2022 – early 2023)

The event is planned to be attended by:

I Experts:

  • Andrii Ivanets, leading researcher of the National Museum of the Holodomor-genocide, candidate of historical sciences. Support by “traditional” religious organizations of the Russian Federation for Russia’s aggressive and genocidal war against Ukraine.
  • Andrii Shchekun, editor-in-chief of the newspaper “Krymska svitlytsia”, coordinator of the humanitarian policy group of the Expert Network of the Crimean Platform. Welcoming word.
  • Maksym Mayorov, an employee of the Center for Strategic Communications and Information Security. Welcoming word.
  • Ihor Kozlovsky, president of the Center of Religious Science Research and International Spiritual Relations.
  • Mykola Kikkas, lawyer of the NGO “Regional Center for Human Rights,” attorney. Characteristics of the main narratives of anti-Ukrainian religious propaganda as a means of aggression.
  • Daryna Podhorna, expert of the NGO “Regional Center for Human Rights”.
  • Nadiya Vaskivska, expert of the NGO “Regional Center for Human Rights”. Legal qualification of religious propaganda under international law.
  • Valentyna Potapova, head of the Almenda Civic Education Center. The role of religious organizations in the system of destroying the Ukrainian identity of schoolchildren in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine.
  • Volodymyr Khoroshevskyi, assistant to the member of the House of Lords of Great Britain Maurice Glazman, expert of the humanitarian policy group of the Expert Network of the Crimean Platform
  • Evelina Kravchenko, a candidate of historical sciences, is an expert on the humanitarian policy group of the Expert Network of the Crimean Platform. The scientific study of the history of early Christianity in the Crimea as a factor in countering disinformation.
  • Oleksandr Levchenko, Ambassador of Ukraine to Croatia 2010-2017, historian, expert of the Regional Council of Ukrainians of Crimea.
  • Andrii Yakovlev, expert of the RCPL. The right to freedom of religion and church collaborationism
  • Dmytro Bily, head of the historical research department of the National Museum of the Holodomor-genocide, professor, and doctor of historical science. Persecution of Ukrainian religious organizations and leaders in the occupied part of Donbas in 2014.

II. Representatives of religious organizations:

  1. representative of OCU (the name has not yet been announced)
  2. Mufti of Crimea Ayder Rustemov
  3. Mufti of the “Umma” DUMU Murat Suleymanov
  4. Chief Rabbi of Ukraine Moshe Azman
  5. Representative of the UGCC (no answer)

III. Representatives of state authorities:

Viktor Voinalovych, First Deputy Head of State Service of Ukraine for Ethno-Politics and Freedom of Conscience
Permanent Representative of the President of Ukraine in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea Tamila Tasheva

 

British Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Melinda Simmons and an employee of the US Embassy may participate

Organizing Committee of Public Dialogue