Media: Patriarch Kirill spied for the KGB in Switzerland in the 1970s

Russian Patriarch Kirill, a supporter of President Vladimir Putin and Russia’s decision to invade Ukraine, spied for the USSR in Switzerland in the 1970s, Swiss media report.

According to the weekly Sonntagszeitung (published in German) and Le Matin Dimanche (published in French), which had access to the declassified files of the Swiss National Archives, “Monsignor Kirill”, as mentioned in the document, worked for the KGB, the main security and intelligence agency of the USSR.

Kirill is said to have carried out espionage activities while living in Geneva as the official representative of the Moscow Patriarchate to the World Council of Churches (WCC).

Kirill’s mission, codenamed “Mikhailov”, was also to influence this Council, which the KGB infiltrated in the 1970s and 1980s.

The Russian Orthodox Church refused to comment on Kirill’s alleged espionage activities in Geneva, while the WCC said it had “no information” on the subject.

According to the archives, the Soviet aim was to encourage the institution to condemn the US and its allies and to soften criticism of the lack of religious freedom in the USSR.

However, the Patriarch’s cousin Mikhail Gundayev, who currently represents the Russian Church at the WCC in Geneva, insisted to Le Matin Dimanche that his uncle “was not an agent, although he was under the strict control of the KGB”.

And this, he insisted, “did not affect the sincerity of his engagement in ecumenical work with other Churches”.

Gundayev also insisted that his uncle had a special appreciation for Switzerland. Among other things, he was keen on skiing and reportedly even broke his leg on the Swiss slopes in 2007.

“Between religious diplomacy, espionage and finance, Cyril was constantly drawn to the Alps and the shores of Lake Geneva,” Le Maten said.

“I have special feelings for your country,” the Patriarch said in 2019 after receiving the President of the upper house of the Swiss Parliament. “Of all the countries in the world, I have probably visited Switzerland the most.”/Danas/