Violations revealed as gov’t team audits Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra

A commission from the Ministry of Culture and Information Policy of Ukraine is inspecting the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra, where until recently a Moscow-run church was headquartered.

The team is recording destruction or damage caused to cultural heritage sites, the ministry’s press service reported, according to Ukrinform.

"The MCIP Commission is finally working, although not without obstacles. We are reporting a crime under Art. 298 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (‘illegal excavations at an archaeological heritage site, destruction, or damage to cultural heritage sites’)," the statement reads.

As Ukrinform reported earlier, the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra National Reserve announced the termination on March 29, 2023, of the lease agreement with the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate. Since then, supporters of the UOC (MP) had been hampering the audit effort.