ROC wants to grab 24 objects of the landscape importance museum «Khersones» in Crimea

The Simferopol and Crimean diocese of the Russian Orthodox Church is preparing the second request to the Federal Property Management Agency to transfer for free usage 24 objects of the landscape importance museum «Khersones Tavriysky» in the occupied Crimea. The rector of St. Vladimir's Cathedral on the reserved area, Sergey Khalyuta informed about it.

The Russian Orthodox Church noted that earlier objects supposedly belonged to the Vladimir Monastery, according to RIA «Novosti».

«The documents will be resubmitted to the Federal Property Management Agency. I can’t say the exact timing, but as soon as the documents will be prepared and agreed, we will send them immediately,» archpriest said.

According to Sergiy Khalyuta, facilities disposal of the reserved area won’t harm the status of «Khersones» as UNESCO object.

In turn, the director of «Khersones» Svetlana Melnikova said that the transfer of the reserved area objects for the church usage will cause it a great harm.

«We must understand that those buildings which are claimed by the Simferopol diocese have a museum exhibition area, a depository, the restoration workshops ... This decision (to transfer − Ed.) will cause a great harm to Khersones reserve and will not allow it to develop in the future,» she stated.

The Simferopol and Crimean diocese has sent a request to transfer «Khersones» for free use to the Federal Property Management Agency in 2016. However, the agency rejected it because of incomplete list of documents.