War in Ukraine: Canada sanctions Patriarch Kirill

Canada on Friday sanctioned Patriarch Kirill, head of the Russian Orthodox Church, as part of a new salvo of measures in response to the invasion of Ukraine targeting Russian disinformation and propaganda agents.

 

The measures were quickly denounced by Moscow, through the spokeswoman of the Russian diplomacy Maria Zakharova, according to whom the sanctions against the patriarch could only have been introduced by Satanists.

 

Patriarch Kirill, leader of the Russian Orthodox since 2009, has put his church at the service of Russian President Vladimir Putin, calling him a miracle, sharing his ambition for a conservative dominating Russia and supporting the offensive in Ukraine.

 

In addition to Canada, the United Kingdom also sanctioned the 75-year-old Patriarch Kirill in June after the European Union dropped him from its blacklist.

 

To counter the Kremlin's disinformation campaign, Canada is imposing sanctions against 29 state-sponsored disinformation and propaganda agents and 15 entities controlled or owned by the Russian government and involved in disinformation efforts, Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly said on the sidelines of a G20 meeting in Bali.

 

The sanctions also target Sumbatovich Gasparyan, head of the international department of the Russian media group RT. In recent months, Ottawa has banned the broadcasting of RT channels in Canada, leading to retaliation from Moscow, which closed the office of the Canadian public media CBC/Radio-Canada in Russia.

 

The Russian propaganda machine must be held accountable for its lies. Canada is determined to fight misinformation, everywhere and at all times, Joly said, warning that those who propagate deception will be held accountable.

 

In total, Ottawa has imposed sanctions on over 1,150 individuals and entities from Russia, Ukraine and Belarus.