Russian Church installs Soviet military veteran to lead occupation-created diocese in Kherson Oblast
After Patriarch Kirill consecrated him in Moscow, Igor Pashentsev will oversee Russian Orthodox parishes across five occupied Kherson districts.
The head of Russia's Orthodox Church, Patriarch Kirill, recently consecrated a former Soviet military veteran as the new bishop for a newly created diocese in occupied Ukraine. Igor Pashentsev, who served in the Soviet Defense Ministry's nuclear arsenal and graduated from a chemical defense school, will oversee Orthodox churches in five occupied districts of Kherson Oblast.
This move advances the Russian Orthodox Church's incorporation of occupied Ukrainian parishes into a Moscow-controlled structure. Ukraine banned the Moscow-based church from operating in the country in 2024, citing its illegal activities. The appointment comes as part of Russia's broader strategy to control religious life in occupied Ukraine, targeting those who reject Kremlin authority.
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