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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
World
Ashifa Kassam and agencies

Shadow of war hangs over Orthodox Easter as Zelenskiy and Putin mark holiday

Vladimir Putin and Moscow’s mayor, Sergei Sobyanin, hold lit tapers in front of a large religious painting
Vladimir Putin and Moscow’s mayor, Sergei Sobyanin, at Orthodox Easter service at Cathedral of Christ the Saviour. Photograph: Pavel Bednyakov/Kremlin pool/EPA

Orthodox Easter services in Ukraine and Russia have taken on a political tone, as Volodymyr Zelenskiy asserted that God had a “Ukrainian flag on his shoulder” and Vladimir Putin attended a church service led by a staunch supporter of Moscow’s invasion.

Noting that Ukraine had now been fighting Russia for 802 days, Zelenskiy called on Ukrainians to pray for each other and the soldiers on the frontline. “And we believe: God has a chevron with the Ukrainian flag on his shoulder,” said the president, dressed in a traditional embroidered Ukrainian vyshyvanka shirt and khaki trousers. “So with such an ally, life will definitely win over death.”

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