Russia's Putin accuses Kiev of meddling in Orthodox faith

FILE PHOTO: Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a joint news conference with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (not pictured) after their meeting at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia January 23, 2019. Sputnik/Mikhail Klimentyev/Kremlin via REUTERS/File Photo

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday accused the government in Kiev of flagrantly meddling in the life of Orthodoxy in Ukraine where a new national church has broken away from Moscow's orbit.

Speaking at a Russian Orthodox Church event attended by Patriarch Kirill in Moscow, Putin said that Russia reserved the right to defend people's rights to worship.