Free Republic

The Russian Orthodox Church has restored the Protopresbyter (chief priest) of the Military and Naval Clergy. On June 7th the Holy Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church resolved: “…To re-introduce the rank of the Protopresbyter of the military and naval clergy that had existed before 1918. The chairman of the Synodal Department for Interaction with the Armed Forces and Law Enforcement Agencies, Priest Oleg Ovcharov shall be appointed to the post of Protopresbyter of the Military and Naval Clergy for the period of his duties as the Chairman of the above mentioned department”. This position had originally been introduced in...

The Russian Orthodox Church considers the appointment of Karin Jean-Pierre, representing the lesbian community, as the White House press secretary as a sign of the degradation of American society. "We definitely do not welcome the activities of this community, and I believe that the appointment of representatives of this community to such public positions once again testifies to the moral degradation of society in those countries where this happens," - Metropolitan Hilarion, head of the Department for External Church Relations of the Russian Orthodox Church, said on the air of the Russian state TV channel. He said that he does...

UnionPay is afraid to cooperate with a number of large Russian banks because of the risk of secondary sanctions, RBC learned. Sanctioned banks that issued such cards or planned to do so are forced to abandon projects Large Russian banks that have been under blocking sanctions from Western countries will not be able to issue UnionPay cards, as the payment system is afraid to cooperate with them because of the risk of secondary sanctions. RBC was told about this by five sources in large banks, including those that fell under sanctions. An interlocutor close to Sberbank said that the bank’s...

Russia has 'unleashed chemical weapons on Mariupol' with Ukrainian troops reporting they are suffering breathing issues and dizziness - as the besieged port city's mayor reveals more than 10,000 civilians have died in the conflict so far. The unidentified agent is said to have been dropped on the city from a Russian drone, according to unverified reports from the city's Azov regiment. Details of the assault, via the Telegram messaging app, say a 'poisonous substance of unknown origin' has led to the city's defenders suffering from symptoms including breathing issues, 'respiratory failure' and 'vestibulo-atactic syndrome'. The alleged attack came just...