On April 7, 2023, the lawyer Archpriest Nikita Chekman announced on his own Telegram channel that the Holy Dormition Kiev-Pechersk Lavra / Monastery / Ukrainian Orthodox Church in accordance with Part 2 of Art. 17 of the Law of Ukraine “On Freedom of Conscience and Religious Organizations”, a petition was filed for the return of religious buildings and structures to the ownership of the religious community. The issue of a legal solution to the return of church property to religious communities by Ukraine is also under the control of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe.

“The Kiev-Pechersk Lavra is an outstanding shrine of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, a well-known monument of history and architecture. From the 11th century and until now, the Christian tradition has been preserved in the Lavra, services are held, despite any persecution against the clergy and parishioners of the UOC,” the clergyman noted.

“Currently, the Temples of the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra are state property – we consider this unfair, since it was thanks to the parishioners that the church was actually restored from the ruins. We hope that the application of the Monastery will be granted, and the Temples of the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra will belong to the religious community in accordance with the laws of Ukraine, as an undoubtedly democratic constitutional state,” the lawyer emphasized.