1st Edition

The Russian Orthodox Church’s Wartime Public Diplomacy in Ukraine Constructing the Russian World

By Andis Kudors Copyright 2027
184 Pages 1 B/W Illustrations
by Routledge

184 Pages 1 B/W Illustrations
by Routledge

This book reveals how the Russian Orthodox Church (ROC) has systematically transformed religious messaging into a strategic tool of warfare, supporting Russian military objectives while undermining Ukrainian resistance. It introduces an innovative interdisciplinary framework merging faith diplomacy with wartime public diplomacy theory, enhanced by framing analysis. This pioneering approach... Read more

List of Tables
List of Figures
Acknowledgements

Introduction
1 Fight for Hearts and Minds During Wartime: A Theory
2 Faith Diplomacy’s Aim: Peace or Victory
3 The Russian Orthodox Church’s Goals, Communication Channels, and Audience in Ukraine
4 The Russian World and Dialogue Among Civilizations
5 Annexation of Crimea as “a Reunification of the Russian World”
6 Sacralization of War in Donbas: “Angels” versus “Demons”
7 The Moscow Patriarchate’s Support for Cossacks and Criminals
8 Patriarch Kirill, Priest Andrey Tkachev, and Full-Scale Invasion in 2022
9 The Voice of the Orthodox Opposition: Not on My Behalf!
10 The Potential of Impact
Conclusions
Appendix: Sample of Using the Framing Method
Index

Biography

Andis Kudors was an executive director of the Centre for East European Policy Studies (2006–2019). His research interests include Russian compatriot policy, sharp power, propaganda, disinformation, Russian Orthodoxy, and informational warfare. Kudors is an author of many analytical articles about Russian foreign policy and Latvian security. He was Fulbright Scholar at the Kennan Institute, Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in Washington DC, USA (2014–2015) and Visiting Scholar at the Institute for European, Russian and Eurasian Studies (Elliott School of International Affairs, George Washington University) (2021–2022). In 2021 Andis Kudors was appointed Commander of The Cross of Recognition by the President of the Republic of Latvia Egils Levits for his contribution to the research of Latvian national security. Andis Kudors is author of the book Russia and Latvia: A Case of Sharp Power, Routledge, London, 2024.