The consequences of the church schism in Ukraine affect the civil rights of believers in other countries, Sergei Gavrilov, President of the Interparliamentary Assembly of Orthodoxy, told RIA Novosti.

He specified that during the meeting, “the Ukrainian issue, which provoked a deep intra-religious split, was discussed separately.”

“This is a problem associated with contradictions between different Orthodox churches, initially arising on issues of church jurisdictions, but threatening further disputes and schisms. The consequences of these internal church disputes and disagreements directly affect the civil rights and freedoms of believers in different countries of the world,” Gavrilov said.

The meeting of the international secretariat, chairmen and rapporteurs of the IAP commissions was held in Corfu, Greece; parliamentarians from 25 countries took part in it.