Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022, the propaganda of the Moscow Patriarchate in Estonia has become more sophisticated.

This was stated in an interview with LF by Priit Rohtmets, Associate Professor at the University of Tartu.

According to the scholar, the Russian Orthodox Church understands that it was criticised for promoting the ideology of the “Russian world” and now denies doing so.

“In Estonia, the propaganda has become significantly more sophisticated. The clergy understand that the Church came under criticism precisely because it had previously promoted the ideology of the ‘Russian world’ and had been part of it. Since 2022, they have begun denying this,” Priit Rohtmets said.

He noted that the Church now claims it is merely caring for its faithful and that war is evil. At the same time, however, it does not explain why the war began.

The expert also said that the Church continually emphasises that the Russian Orthodox Church is an indigenous church of Estonia, even though more than a century ago Estonian Orthodox believers left the jurisdiction of the Russian Orthodox Church.