In May 2022, the UOC declared itself administratively independent of Moscow, but this claim is contested by critics of the Church. IN KYIV, on Tuesday of last week, on his first full day in the Ukrainian capital, Archbishop Welby heard from representatives of the both the OCU and UOC, in the course of a day of meetings with church leaders. Lambeth PalaceMetropolitan Epiphany, Archbishop Welby, and Archbishop Yevstratiy exchange gifts in KyivAfter listening to the assembled representatives, Archbishop Welby said that he had “learnt a great deal”, and promised that the Church of England would “continue our prayers, but also our advocacy”. Metropolitan Epiphany thanked Archbishop Welby for visiting Ukraine and “having no fear in this time of danger”. Archbishop Yevstratiy of Chernihiv & Nizhyn, who was also in the meeting, characterised the law as closing a loophole allowing Russian propaganda.

Source: The Times February 14, 2024 12:23 UTC