The Estonian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate (MPEÕK) is subordinate to the Moscow Patriarchate, but will not be designated in the same way under the plan.

Speaking to ETV politics show "Esimene stuudio," Läänemets said that the ultimate aim is to ban the Moscow Patriarchate's activities in Estonia.

Speaking at a press conference earlier this week, a representative of the MPEÕK said the organization does not directly report to the Moscow Patriarchate, or to Patriarch Kirill, and so cannot be held accountable for his statements of support regarding Russia's war in Ukraine, however.

Läänemets told "Esimene stuudio" that, based on his ministry's knowledge plus a recent assessment from the Internal Security Service (ISS), as minister of the interior, he has no choice but to act to sever the ties between the MPEÕK and the Moscow Patriarch.

"Taking the context as a whole, as minister of the interior, I have no choice but to propose to the Riigikogu that they declare the activities of the Patriarchate operating in Moscow as [a] terrorist [organization] and supportive of terrorism, so consequently the interior minister may go to court and propose the termination of the activities of that church organization as it operates here," he said.

"This will not affect congregations, and it does not mean that churches will be closed, but it means that the connection with Moscow will be cut," Läänemets went on.

"We must understand that today the Moscow Patriarchate is subordinate to Vladimir Putin, who fundamentally leads terrorist activities worldwide," he added.

According to Läänemets, the Riigikogu has previously adopted a similar declaration and recognized Russia as a terrorist state.

Läänemets has been interior minister since July 2022 and during that time has called for representatives of the MPEÕK to give an account regarding security issues on a total of four occasions.

However, a statement in April adopted by the World Russian People's Council, an ethno-centric organization, has taken the security situation to the next level, the minister said.

Läänemets said: "To draw a parallel, Islamic terrorists who claim to be waging a holy war against the Western world, against Western values; well the present day patriarch and Patriarchate operating out of Moscow are no different from those Islamist terrorists."

Läänemets noted that there are various MPEÕK congregations active in Estonia, and that their internal operations are not directly influenced by Moscow, yet the churches' subordination to Moscow still poses a threat to Estonia's security.

The MPEÕK has over 100,000 followers in Estonia.

"We must understand that if Patriarch Kirill is the head of the church in Moscow, then no matter what is discussed in congregations in Estonia, his message is very forceful and strong, and it certainly reaches people, and this is what certain people (also in Estonia) base their actions on. /.../ We have reason to suspect that (from Russia), preparations are being made for much larger things for the (Orthodox) community, and this also affects Estonia," Läänemets added.

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