A Desperate Kiev Bans Religious Freedom, Demands Ethnic Cleansing

As Russia delivers devastating attacks on Ukraine’s vital infrastructure and energy supplies, the government, presumably on orders from the West, is still refusing to negotiate and insists it will fight to the last man. NATO officials continue to bluster that “we will stay by your side until victory”. But weapons supplies are running out, faster than the military industrial complex can produce new ones. And it is increasingly difficult, in particular in Europe, for leaders to ask their populations to accept a sharp drop in their living standards to “defend democracy and freedom” in Ukraine, when the authorities there are resorting to ever more drastic totalitarian measures.

All opposition parties, as we reported, have been shut down, as well as any media that is critical of the Zelensky government (cf. SAS 40/22). So much for the freedom of expression. Now, the regime is escalating the attack on the freedom of religion as well. President Zelenskyy announced in his daily television address on Dec. 1 that the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) will be banned, its clergy will be subjected to sanctions, and religious activities generally will be more tightly policed. Already last May, the UOC had officially broken its ties to the Moscow Patriarchate, but it’s now charged with threatening “Ukraine’s spiritual independence” by having ties to Russians.

Kiev’s Center for Countering Disinformation (CCD), an agency of the National Security and Defense Council (NSDC), defended the move on Telegram, saying that “Ukraine must be cleansed of everything russian and cleanse all areas of life where russia has penetrated” (sic).

This fascist concept of ethnic cleansing was taken to further lengths by NSDC Secretary Oleksiy Danilov during his speech, the same day, at the Kyiv Security Forum. (Note that the NSDC is headed by President Zelensky himself.) The Russians, he said, “are just barbarians. And when you say that we should sit down at the table with these barbarians and talk about something, I generally think that it will be inappropriate…. I consider Hitler and Putin to be Siamese twins … they are similar people…”

Spewing the most vile “untermensch” ideology, Danilov continued: “We are different, we have nothing to do with you. You are Muscovy, you are thieves who constantly stole someone’s history. You constantly demand something, but you are not at all worthy of anyone in the world communicating with you.”

That Security Forum was attended by, among others, U.S. Under Secretary of State Victoria Nuland, the President of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly Joëlle Garriaud-Maylam; U.K. Ambassador to Ukraine Melinda Simmons; U.S. Generals David Petraeus and Wesley Clark (both retired). They all vowed undying support for Kyiv. But according to the reports available, none of them objected to the fascist utterings of Danilov or others…