The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine commented on the illegal seizure of the OCU Cathedral in Simferopol by the occupation authorities and said Russia should immediately unblock the free functioning of this cathedral.

"Without any legal grounds, the Russian occupation administration seized and began the forced eviction of ministers and believers from the Cathedral of Saints Equal-to-the-Apostles Volodymyr and Olha of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine in temporarily occupied Simferopol," according to the text of a comment published on Friday.

It is known that the occupiers broke down the doors of the temple, made an inventory of the property and forced the parishioners to leave their prayer places.

"The capture of the Cathedral in Simferopol is yet another suppression of freedom of conscience and religion carried out by Russia in the occupied Ukrainian lands. The list and number of church property stolen by the invaders, destroyed churches, people imprisoned for their faith, tortured laity, kidnapped clergymen are growing daily," the ministry said.

The aggressor country neglects its international obligations under international humanitarian law, in particular, the observance of the right to freedom of religion and belief in the temporarily occupied Crimea.

In addition, the occupying power oppresses religious minorities and communities, and conducts searches, destroys religious buildings, prayer places, forcibly and illegally evicts them, and also persecutes and persecutes parishioners and priests of the OCU, Protestant churches, Muslim communities, and others.

These actions are condemned, in particular, in the resolution of the UN General Assembly 77/229 the situation with human rights in the temporarily occupied Autonomous Republic of Crimea and in the city of Sevastopol, Ukraine, as well as in the statements of Chairman of the International Religious Freedom or Belief Alliance On situation in Ukraine and On the anniversary of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

"Russia must immediately unblock the free functioning of the Cathedral of Saints Equal-to-the-Apostles Volodymyr and Olha in Simferopol and stop violating the rights of believers of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine in Crimea and other occupied territories," the Foreign Ministry said.

It is noted that all cases of violence by the invaders against Ukrainian clergy, as well as bullying of believers, the destruction of churches, mosques, synagogues and prayer places, and the robbery of sacred buildings are properly recorded and documented by the authorized agency of the Ukrainian authorities.

"None of these cases will go unpunished, not a single Russian criminal will escape responsibility," according to the text.

The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry calls on the international community, in particular, the participants of the International Crimea Platform, to condemn the oppression of the rights of believers in the temporarily occupied Crimea by the Russian occupation administration and to increase political, diplomatic and sanctions pressure on Russia.