Roskomnadzor has added Ukrainian theologian and philosopher Archimandrite Kyrylo (born Serhiy Govorun) to the register of so-called “foreign agents.”
The scholar notes that his inclusion in the list is the result of systematic work against Russian propaganda. Archimandrite Kyrylo (Govorun) spoke about this in a comment to LB.ua.
“There is a popular stereotype that only Russian citizens are included in this register. In fact, this is not the case: a number of foreigners are also included. The main criterion for inclusion in the register is influence on the Russian public. For me personally, this is recognition that I have such influence and that I have been working systematically for many years, trying to create Ukrainian or pro-Ukrainian narratives for Russians,” he said.
According to him, the main tool of his work is a Telegram channel, which he runs in Russian:
“I try to articulate Ukrainian anti-Putin narratives, and I have a large audience there, mostly Russians. I even see representatives of the leadership of the Moscow Patriarchate and some Kremlin officials among my subscribers. Roskomnadzor’s decision directly refers to my Telegram channel,” he added.
Govorun stressed that his work is aimed at forming “counter-narratives” to official Russian propaganda:
“My many years of attempts to create parallel narratives, alternative to those of the Kremlin, both about Ukraine and about the war, have obviously become the reason for my inclusion in the register.”
At the same time, he added that the Russian authorities had previously imposed various sanctions against him:
“I was defrocked by the Moscow Patriarchate and effectively erased from the Russian Orthodox Church’s information field. This is reminiscent of the ancient Roman practice of damnatio memoriae, when prominent figures were deliberately erased from the annals of history. Now they have decided to remember and ban me. Why now, I do not know.”
Regarding the possible consequences, the archimandrite noted: “I have always been a citizen of Ukraine, although I worked in Moscow for about ten years. I never even thought about taking Russian citizenship. Therefore, this decision has zero significance for me. But it is obvious that now there will be consequences for those who repost my materials in Russia. I warned my subscribers that I am now a ‘foreign agent’ so that they would be more careful.”
- Kyrylo Govorun is a Doctor of Philosophy, professor at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, director of the Huffington Ecumenical Institute (USA), and professor at the Stockholm School of Theology. He previously taught at Yale University, Columbia University (USA) and the University of Alberta (Canada).