Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby visited Kyiv to support the efforts of the people of Ukraine in the fight against Russian aggression.
The visit of the spiritual head of the Church of England included meetings with religious figures, representatives of the government and society, visits to places and communities most affected by Russian aggression.
During a meeting with the All-Ukrainian Council of Churches and Religious Organizations, Archbishop Welby noted that there are two reasons why he is in Ukraine. First, to express solidarity and demonstrate that the Church of England stands with the Ukrainian people. The second is to investigate and hear from Ukrainian religious leaders how believers in Great Britain could support people suffering from the war: both inside Ukraine and as refugees in other countries, reports the press service of the Council.
The British delegation was able to feel the realities of life in Ukraine already at the beginning of the meeting: due to the air raid alert over a Russian missile attack, the meeting began in an underground shelter. After the alert was over, the meeting continued in the conference hall of the capital’s hotel.
Bishop Markos Hovhannesyan, presiding over the Council, expressed his gratitude to the Archbishop of Canterbury for his support for Ukraine and the Ukrainian people.
The present members of the Council of Churches spoke of the main areas of support for Ukraine, including humanitarian aspects, provision of military aid to Ukraine, air and missile defenses to protect the lives of civilians, provision of post-traumatic rehabilitation assistance, etc.
