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Serbian and Russian Orthodox Churches Unite Against West.
In late April, the patriarch of the Serbian Orthodox Church (SOC), Porfirije, was on an official trip to Russia. While there, he seized every opportunity to highlight the close ties between the two nations, a reminder that the Russian Orthodox Church (ROC) remains the center of gravity for Russian influence in the Western Balkans.
On April 23, Porfirije sat down for dinner with Russian Patriarch Kirill and President Vladimir Putin. Throughout the conversation, Putin continuously emphasized a desire “to strengthen… [shared] traditional values and spiritual foundations.” One of the central ideas, referenced often, was the perceived ongoing Western attack against traditional Christianity and Christian values. Russian Patriarch Kirill stated explicitly that “things that are happening to human morality in the West today… [are] the work of the devil,” and Porfirije doubled down, insisting that “centers of power from the West do not wish to nurture the identity of the Serbian people or their culture.”
By framing the American-led West as antithetical to the Russian and Serbian ways of life, these religious leaders help to justify antagonism and action against its members.
This is a particularly pertinent tactical move in Serbia, whose anti-corruption movement has recently reached new heights after a Belgrade demonstration in March brought hundreds of thousands of peaceful protestors to the streets. This gathering marked the largest demonstration in Serbia since the monumental 1990s protests against the tyrannical Milošević regime and presents the greatest challenge President Aleksandar Vučić has faced. In response to the unrest, Serbia’s then-deputy Prime Minister Aleksandar Vulin emphasized repeatedly that the protest represented one of many attempted Western-led coups, and thanked “Russia’s special services, which always support [Serbia] in [its] fight against color revolutions.” These claims built upon previously established foundations – the year before, for example, Russia’s Ambassador to Serbia warned that the West wants to destroy Christian Orthodox values.
Porfirije himself recently spoke out against the protests. In his time with Putin, he was sure to further reference the danger of ongoing “color revolutions” and to emphasize that “the Serbian people consider themselves and the Russian people to be one,” facing the same fundamental cultural threat.
However closely these religious leaders might strive to connect Christianity to Russia’s political and military efforts, though, they seem to be struggling to uphold its basic theological principles in their own lives. The Russian Orthodox Church has staunchly defended the war in Ukraine, which has killed hundreds of thousands of Russians and Ukrainians. Its priests have continuously blessed nuclear warheads, despite the almost universal position within organized Christendom that they are never justifiable. Kirill himself is reported to have served as a KGB officer in the 1970s, and currently has a net worth of approximately $4 billion – he is known to enjoy expensive watches and time spent on the Church’s personal luxury yacht.
This hypocrisy is no accident – in fact, it is the result of a carefully cultivated relationship between the Church and the Kremlin, in which the former acts as a purveyor of propaganda for Putin in exchange for continued support. Thus, the narratives coming out of the ROC, and, by extension, the SOC are nothing more than an amplification and extension of Putin’s own messaging.
As tensions escalate in the Balkans, therefore, the Church plays an important role in seeking to preserve Russia’s traditional sphere of influence and protect the positions of its political allies. Efforts in this vein are already manifest. From Bosnia and Herzegovina to Kosovo to Montenegro, Moscow and Belgrade have been working overtime to foment Serbian nationalism and rewrite history.
Serbia’s government has called for the creation of a “Serbian world” – a Balkan equivalent to Putin’s “Russian world” – designed to unite ethnic Serbs under a unified cultural, religious, and political identity. In pursuit of this goal, Milrod Dodik, President of Republika Srpska in Bosnia and Herzegovina, has openly called for secession and reunification with Serbia.
This week, Dodik made dangerously inflammatory remarks, claiming that “the solution for Bosnia and Herzegovina is for Muslims to return to their old Orthodox faith.” Russia is fanning the flames in the country, as Putin wants to demonstrate that NATO and the EU mission (EUFOR) are merely symbolic alliances – his aim is to weaken their credibility by proving that they will not intervene if the conflict escalates.
Porfirije himself has waded into the fray, releasing a statement criticizing Dodik’s recent imprisonment – which was announced only after he flagrantly contravened the constitution – and supporting independence from Bosnia. This move is meant to increase Serbian, and, by extension, Russian power and solidify the Church’s standing as a crucial pillar of any potential “Serbian World.” As a corollary benefit, it also destabilizes the tenuous peace in the region and threatens to distract NATO from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Putin understands that ethnoreligious divisions in the Balkans offer fertile ground for Russian and Serbian meddling, as both states increasingly cloak their geopolitical ambitions in religious vestments. The West must recognize that in the Western Balkans, the battle for influence is being waged not just in parliaments and battlefields, but in the pews.
Dr. Ivana Stradner serves as a research fellow with the Barish Center for Media Integrity at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. Marina Chernin is an intern at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies.
Source; FDD