EU plans sanctions against Patriarch Kirill: Reports

By Agnes Szucs

BRUSSELS (AA) – The European Commission has proposed sanctions against the leader of the Russian Orthodox Church, Patriarch Kirill, over his support for Russia’s war on Ukraine, according to media reports Wednesday.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen presented a draft of the sixth round of sanctions against Russia to European Union lawmakers earlier in the day.

The EU executive body suggested, among other things, to ban Russian oil imports and exclude Sberbank from the SWIFT international payment system as well as to hit new individuals with an asset freeze and travel ban.

Von der Leyen did not mention names, but according to the news outlet Politico, Patriarch Kirill will be on the blacklist for being “one of the most prominent supporters of the Russian military aggression against Ukraine.”

According to the draft seen by the outlet, the church leader used sermons and made remarks to support the war and blessed soldiers fighting in Ukraine, which contributed to a large extent to amply Russian President Vladimir Putin’s messages.

“Patriarch Kirill is therefore responsible for supporting or implementing actions or policies which undermine or threaten the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of Ukraine, as well as stability and security in Ukraine,” the leaked sanction proposal says.

The list of individuals will be published in the EU’s official journal once EU member states adopt the sanctions package.

EU ambassadors are expected to endorse the restrictive measures Thursday.

The EU has allocated €1.5 billion ($1.6 billion) in military support to Ukrainians and adopted five packages of sanctions since the war began on Feb. 24.

The restrictive measures target individuals including Putin, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, oligarchs and military officers.​​​​​​​

The EU has also banned the export of luxury goods and import of coal and excluded Russian and Belarusian banks from the SWIFT international banking system.

At least 3,238 civilians have been killed and 3,397 others injured in Ukraine since the war with Russia began, according to UN estimates. The true toll is feared to be much higher.

More than 5.6 million people have fled to other countries, with over 7.7 million people internally displaced, data from the UN refugee agency shows.