The head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church (UGCC), Sviatoslav Shevchuk, visited Berlin this week. He took part in the St. Michael's Reception at the invitation of the German episcopate. The situation in Ukraine dominated this year's event. The head of the UGCC met with members of the Ukrainian diaspora in Berlin, local bishops and German officials, including Chancellor Olaf Scholz.

DW spoke with Shevchuk during his time in Berlin.

DW: You've met the representatives of the Ukrainian diaspora in Berlin. What did you talk about?

Sviatoslav Shevchuk: The first question was thewar in Ukraine. It was plain to see how deeply people here are affected by what is happening in Ukraine. Many are uncomfortable with being here. People are longing for their homeland. There are 95,000 Ukrainians in Berlin alone, and that is a huge number. There is a great need for consolidation, and the church acts as a platform around which our people can unite.

With the war still ongoing, is there still any interreligious dialogue taking place in Ukraine?

When it comes to the church as a community, the foundation of church life, here we experience a very fruitful, active dialogue. The war showed that Russian bullets do not distinguish whether you are an Orthodox, Catholic, Protestant, Jew or Muslim.

I recall that after those tragedies near Kyiv, in Bucha, in Irpin, when we were burying the innocently murdered and [standing] above a mass grave, everyone understood that in the grave we are all the same. All faithful unite when facing such........

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