Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy accused Russia of carrying out a ruthless war not only against his country but against Christianity itself, saying that Moscow has destroyed churches and persecuted clergy in what he called both a physical and spiritual assault.
Speaking on “The Rosenberg Report,” during an interview filmed inside his presidential offices in Kyiv and broadcast on the TBN network, Zelenskyy rejected claims from some Western voices that Ukraine mistreats Christians. He argued that such accusations are misleading and ignore the reality of Russia’s devastation.
“Those claims … are false and manipulative,” Zelenskyy said.
Zelenskyy stressed that Ukraine provides broader religious freedoms than any other nation that once belonged to the Soviet Union, including Russia. He noted that more than 70% of Ukrainians identify as Christian and the country is home to over a million Protestants.
According to Zelenskyy, Russia’s strikes have not spared holy places. Kyiv’s main cathedral was reduced to rubble, while Odesa’s central cathedral was heavily damaged by a missile.
He added that countless clergy members — pastors, priests, and other religious leaders — have been killed, abducted, or have gone missing during the war.
Russian forces, he said, have demolished more than 600 churches across denominations — Catholic, Orthodox, Protestant, and others — all of them historic testaments to Ukraine’s religious life.
Despite the ongoing war, Zelenskyy said his government has worked to safeguard religious liberty. He explained that Ukraine has secured the release of believers — Orthodox, Catholic, and Baptist alike — even arranging to swap them in prisoner exchanges for captured soldiers.
Addressing charges that Kyiv targets clergy, Zelenskyy insisted that the only cases involve those who aided Russia.
“Our law simply states that no religious organization can maintain legal ties with an aggressor state … That is not persecution. It is national security,” he said.
He also pointed to national efforts to strengthen religious unity, highlighting Ukraine’s largest prayer breakfast as an example of perseverance. Faith, he said, is not only symbolic but also a vital source of strength in enduring catastrophic loss.
Zelenskyy described the conflict as Europe’s bloodiest since World War II. Since the invasion began in February 2022, he said, more than 400,000 Ukrainians have been killed or grievously wounded, many of them civilians. He accused Russia of intentionally attacking homes and essential civilian infrastructure in addition to military sites.
Yet even amid the destruction, Zelenskyy voiced optimism that peace can be achieved.
He emphasized that President Donald Trump is uniquely positioned to pressure Moscow, saying his approach differs from other Western leaders. In Zelenskyy’s view, only uncompromising strength will compel Russian President Vladimir Putin to stop the war.
“Russia doesn’t respect the United States, and it is not news; but they are afraid, very afraid, very much,” he said. “They respect power, what [the] United States has.”
Moscow destroyed the tifless because of all the filth going on in the basements of those tifless, just like Russia did the last 3.5 years in the tunnels of Ukraine.