Russian President Vladimir Putin holds a candle as he attends the Orthodox Easter service at the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour in Moscow, Russia April 23, 2022. (REUTERS)
President Vladimir Putin on Sunday attended an Easter mass conducted by the Russian Orthodox Church, which has strongly backed the Kremlin leader鈥檚 鈥渟pecial military operation鈥� in Ukraine.
Putin, dressed in a dark blue suit, a white shirt and dark purple tie, stood to one side in Moscow鈥檚 Christ the Saviour Cathedral, holding a lit red candle, live images of the midnight service showed.
The Russian leader crossed himself several times during the ceremony. When Patriarch Kirill announced 鈥淐hrist has risen鈥�, Putin joined the other members of the congregation with the reply 鈥淭ruly he is risen鈥�. He otherwise did not speak.
At an outdoor service in Moscow on Saturday, Kirill said he hoped the conflict in Ukraine would end quickly but did not condemn it. His statements backing Russia鈥檚 intervention, which has been condemned by Kyiv and Western nations as an act of aggression, have splintered the worldwide Orthodox Church.
Russia says it is carrying out a special military operation in Ukraine aimed at demilitarising and 鈥渄enazifying鈥� the country. Ukraine and the West reject that as a baseless pretext.