"A commission has been created for sealing the buildings, which begins its work on July 4, 2023. In this regard, we ask you to vacate the premises and give the keys from them to the reserve. If the monastery refuses to give the keys from the buildings ... the locks will be replaced and the buildings will be sealed," the decree, posted by Chekman on Telegram, read.
The UOC said that the demand to vacate the monastery was illegal and arbitrary.
"In this regard, the UOC Legal Department reports that as of today, the unilateral termination of the contract is appealed in court. No decision has been made by the court on this matter. Accordingly, the reserve does not have any legal basis for such actions, and the demand to vacate the buildings and hand over the keys from them is illegal and should be considered as arbitrariness," an official statement said.
The UOC Legal Department urged the reserve and members of the commission not to violate the law and to wait for the legal decision of the court.
Tensions between the Kiev regime and the Ukrainian Orthodox Church escalated after the start of Russian special military operation in Ukraine in February 2022. Ukrainian authorities started a crackdown on the Orthodox community, accusing believers of having ties with Russia.
Kiev has ordered UOC monks to leave the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra, claiming they allegedly violated the terms of the lease. The Lavra’s jurisdiction was divided between the National Kiev-Pechersk Historical and Cultural Preserve and the UOC itself.
Ukrainian Culture Minister Oleksandr Tkachenko said then the monks could stay in the Lavra if they join the non-canonical Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU), created by Ukrainian authorities to put the Christians across the country under the government's control. The monks refused and slammed the eviction order as illegal because it was not supported by a court decision.