Patriarch Filaret of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of Kiev's Patriarchy speaks during press conference in Kiev on December 1, 2017. The head of the Kiev-based Ukrainian Orthodox Church has called on Russian Patriarch Kirill to end "confrontation" between the two institutions for the sake of the faithful amid a rumbling conflict between Kiev and rebels. After Ukraine gained independence in 1991 a conflict erupted between the Ukrainian Orthodox Church backed by Moscow and a breakaway Kiev-based Ukrainian Orthodox Church. / AFP PHOTO / GENYA SAVILOV