ROVNO, August 3 (RIA Novosti) - The head of the Russian Orthodox Church continued his tour of Ukraine on Monday when he visited Rovno in the west of the country, despite warnings from Ukrainian authorities not to travel there.
The visit was originally planned for Sunday, but Ukrainian officials told Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia said that they were some security concerns surrounding the proposed visit to Rovno and protests were likely in Ukraine's nationalist heartland.
The Kiev Patriarchate, which has occupied the Rovno Cathedral after splitting from the Russian Orthodox Church in 1990s, has widespread support in the city, including the backing of Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko who is in favor of a national church independent from Moscow.
The Kiev Patriarchate and nationalist organizations earlier said Patriarch Kirill, who is seeking to improve relations with Ukraine, should not visit Rovno. However, Ukrainian media cited the country's Interior Ministry as saying that the decision to cancel Sunday's visit to Rovno was made by the Russian side.
Ukraine is a predominantly Orthodox country, but the Orthodox Church in the ex-Soviet state split into two with the predominant branch of Ukrainian Orthodoxy that follows Moscow, becoming a self-governing part of the Russian Orthodox Church overseeing 10,000 parishes in the country. The Moscow Patriarchate holds services in the lower part of the Rovno Cathedral.
The rival Ukrainian Orthodox Church - the Kiev Patriarchate, is not recognized outside of the country. The situation is further complicated by a third church, the Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church, originally formed in 1920s, that operates almost exclusively in the western part of the country.
Supporters of church unity in Rovno hailed the patriarch on Monday with shouts "Our patriarch is Kirill," while local nationalists shouted "Disgrace. Away with Moscow's colonizing priest."
Kirill thanked people for waiting for his arrival, and gave them icons of St. Prince Vladimir who baptized medieval Kievan Rus 1,021 years ago.
"I bow low to those who keep the Orthodox faith! I bless the city of Rovno, the Rovno diocese and the Ukrainian people," he said.
The Russian patriarch has already visited many parts of the country, including Kiev, the Crimea and parts of eastern Ukraine, during his 10-day tour.
