Ukrainian priests pursue unholy row in burned-out Borodyanka

The bitter feud would almost be comical were it not being waged in the devastated Ukrainian town of Borodyanka, north of Kyiv, among hollowed out buildings, burned armoured vehicles and freshly dug graves.

A near two-decade grudge between two priests, fuelled by fierce interchurch tensions and the pursuit of local dominance, has escalated into tit-for-tat claims of attempted murder, treachery, collaboration in forced deportations and vigilante vandalism.

The chief accuser of the two is Father Dmytro Koshka, rector at the Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin, of the Orthodox church of Ukraine. It is not to be confused with the Moscow-affiliated Ukrainian Orthodox church, for which the accused, Father Viktor Talko, is an archpriest.

Koshka said he left the next day for the sake of his wife, Mariya, 41, and daughter, Angelina, 18, for Piskivka, a village 15 miles north-west of Borodyanka.

Talko said he was being unfairly accused of being an agent of the Russian army owing to the historical links between his denomination and Moscow, shaking his head as he spoke.

He denied running away, saying he was picked up by the Ukrainian secret services on 2 April, the day after Russian forces left, and interrogated for six days in a gymnasium in Kyiv. Talko said he had only ever tried to help local people by asking for flour from the Russians and denied giving the invaders information about Koshka.

Grasping what he said was a letter of thanks from a Borodyanka family who had since moved and were uncontactable, Talko said people had been grateful for his help in getting them to Belarus.