{"id":58982,"date":"2026-05-12T10:01:05","date_gmt":"2026-05-12T01:01:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/vomkorea.com\/?p=58982"},"modified":"2026-05-12T10:19:38","modified_gmt":"2026-05-12T01:19:38","slug":"vomk-report-397","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/vomkorea.com\/en\/2026\/05\/12\/vomk-report-397\/","title":{"rendered":"OCCUPIED UKRAINE: AUTHORITIES SEEK TO DEPORT NATIVE-BORN PASTOR FOR MISSIONARY ACTIVITIES"},"content":{"rendered":"

[vc_section][vc_row][vc_column][vc_single_image image=”58984″ img_size=”full” alignment=”center” css=””][vc_custom_heading text=”Soviet authorities imprisoned Pastor Vladimir Pavlovich Rytikov for his faith from 1979 to 1982. But now, authorities in Krasnodon are seeking to do something Soviet authorities never did: Deport Pastor Rytikov from the country of his birth because of his ministry. ” font_container=”tag:p|font_size:1.2em|text_align:left|color:%23111111″ google_fonts=”font_family:Noto%20Sans%3Aregular%2Citalic%2C700%2C700italic|font_style:700%20bold%20regular%3A700%3Anormal” css=”” el_class=”headline”][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_single_image image=”58995″ img_size=”large” alignment=”center” css=””][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text css=””]\u201cIn the last week of April alone, four Unregistered Baptist ministers faced court hearings in Russia and Russia<\/span>-occupied territories, which raises serious questions about religious freedom,\u201d says Voice of the Martyrs Korea Representative Dr<\/span><\/span>.<\/span><\/span>\u00a0Hyun Sook Foley. \u201cIn\u00a0<\/span>three of the<\/span>\u00a0cases, the ministers\u00a0<\/span>are facing fines<\/span>. But the case of Pastor Rytikov deserves special attention because the punishment he is facing is deportation from the place of his birth, where he has lived for 67 yea<\/span><\/span>rs.\u201d<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css=””]Representative Foley says that\u00a0<\/span>Pastor Rytikov was born in\u00a0<\/span>Krasnodon<\/span>\u00a0in 1959<\/span>, in what was then the\u00a0<\/span>Voroshilovgrad Region of Soviet Ukraine<\/span>. The son of an Unregistered Baptist pastor, Rytikov also became an Unregistered Baptist pastor.\u00a0<\/span>He and his father were sent to prison by Soviet authorities from 1979 to 1982 because of their Unregistered Baptist activities.\u00a0<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css=””]\u201cThe Unregistered Baptist congregations have always refused to register with the government because they believe registration is a form of government interference in church matters, and it potenti<\/span>ally opens the door to further government involvement and control,\u201d says Representative Foley. \u201cThey maintain that both biblically and legally they have the right to gather together for worship without state permission.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css=””]Russia disagrees. They closed more than ten Unregistered Baptist congregations last year across the Russian Federation. The court appearances of the four Unregistered Baptist church ministers at the end of April show that the crackdown is continuing.\u00a0<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][\/vc_section][vc_row][vc_column][vc_single_image image=”58992″ img_size=”large” alignment=”center” css=””][vc_custom_heading text=”astor Rytikov and his wife Lyudmila, surrounded by praying supporters taken at a previous court hearing (Source: Urgent Prayer messages of IUC ECB Telegram Channel) ” font_container=”tag:p|font_size:13|text_align:center|color:%23111111″ css=””][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text css=””]But according to Representative Foley, Pastor Rytikov\u2019s case is different.\u00a0<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css=””]\u201cAuthorities have been threatening Pastor Rytikov\u2019s church for a very long time, but since he continues his ministry and refuses to register the church, they are intensifying their threats against him and now seeking to deport him from the land of his birth,\u201d says Representative Foley. \u201cPerhaps because he is in the occupied Ukrainian\u00a0<\/span>territories<\/span>\u00a0they may be treating him especially\u00a0<\/span><\/span>harshly.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css=””]Pastor Rytikov has served as pastor of the\u00a0<\/span>Krasnodon<\/span>\u00a0church since 1995<\/span>.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css=””]On January 25th, Russian authorities raided the church<\/span>.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text css=””]\u201cBefore the authorities detained him<\/span>, he<\/span>\u00a0stood in the pulpit and prayed for both the church and the authorities who were raiding it,\u201d says Representative Foley. \u201cThe authorities warned Pastor Rytikov and the leaders of the congregation that if they did not register the church, it would be shut down. But\u00a0<\/span>Pastor Rytikov simply blessed the authorities who detained him, and then he shared with them about Christ.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css=””]On March 21, Pastor Rytikov posted on the Unregistered Baptist Telegram channel that officers from the Migration Service came to his home. \u201cThey called me out and said: \u2018Your residence permit has been revoked\u2019,\u201d Pastor Rytikov wrote. \u201cI have two weeks to leave for another country\u2014anyw<\/span><\/span>here, they said, \u2018Go to Poland, if you must.\u2019 They said that only my residence permit had been revoked, but not Lyudmila\u2019s (my wife\u2019s). On what grounds? They did not answer. I said, \u2018I was born here and have lived here for 67 years, and now\u00a0<\/span>they\u2019re<\/span>\u00a0deporting me. What if I\u00a0<\/span>don\u2019t<\/span>\u00a0go anywhere?\u2019 They said, \u2018We\u2019ll have you executed,\u2019 and\u00a0<\/span>they\u2019ll<\/span>\u00a0take measures to ensure my departure. Pray that the Lord will preserve and protect us. Lyudmila and I prayed and said, \u2018Lord,\u00a0<\/span>Thy<\/span>\u00a0will be done!\u2019\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css=””]Representative Foley says that at the preliminary court hearing for Pastor Rytikov on April 28, around forty supporters gathered in front of the courthouse but no one except the pastor was\u00a0<\/span>permitted<\/span>\u00a0inside<\/span>.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css=””]\u201cA nine-page indictment against Pastor Rytikov was presented, all centered around alleged missionary activity,\u201d says Representative Foley. \u201cAuthorities requested that Pastor Rytikov be deported.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_single_image image=”58993″ img_size=”large” alignment=”center” css=””][vc_custom_heading text=”Pastor Rytikov and his wife Lyudmila, surrounded by praying supporters (Source: Urgent Prayer messages of IUC ECB Telegram Channel) ” font_container=”tag:p|font_size:13|text_align:center|color:%23111111″ css=””][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text css=””]Pastor Rytikov is due back in court on May 20, at which time the court\u2019s decision is expected to be announced<\/span>.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css=””]Representative Foley says Voice of the Martyrs Korea is urging Christians to pray for Pastor Rytikov and for the court who will decide the case.\u00a0<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css=””]\u201cPastor Rytikov continues to trust the Lord and remains in good spirits,\u201d says Representative Foley. \u201cFor Pastor Rytikov and also for the three other Unregistered Baptists who were brought to courts at the end of April, now is the time for us to intercede on their behalf to the Lord.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css=””]Those who are interested in Voice of the Martyrs Korea\u2019s ministry in partnership with Christians in Russia and Ukraine can learn more at https:\/\/vomkorea.com\/en\/project\/russia-ministry\/<\/a><\/span>.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_column][\/vc_column]<\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"[vc_section][vc_row][vc_column][vc_single_image image=”58984″ img_size=”full” alignment=”center” css=””][vc_custom_heading text=”Soviet authorities imprisoned Pastor Vladimir Pavlovich Rytikov for his faith from 1979 to 1982. But now, authorities in Krasnodon are seeking to do something Soviet …","protected":false},"author":1959,"featured_media":58985,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"give_campaign_id":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[857,235,140],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-58982","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-russian-special","category-special-column","category-vomk-report"],"translation":{"provider":"WPGlobus","version":"3.0.2","language":"en","enabled_languages":["ko","en","zh","ru"],"languages":{"ko":{"title":true,"content":true,"excerpt":false},"en":{"title":true,"content":true,"excerpt":false},"zh":{"title":true,"content":true,"excerpt":false},"ru":{"title":false,"content":false,"excerpt":false}}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/vomkorea.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58982","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/vomkorea.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/vomkorea.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vomkorea.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1959"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vomkorea.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=58982"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/vomkorea.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58982\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":59000,"href":"https:\/\/vomkorea.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58982\/revisions\/59000"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vomkorea.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/58985"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/vomkorea.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=58982"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vomkorea.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=58982"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vomkorea.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=58982"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}