Father Vsevolod also noted that "enterprises of Ukraine's chemical industry have been providing significant assistance for the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate." Moscow, March 19 (Interfax) - The Moscow Patriarchate has asked the Russian government to allow Ukrainian chemical enterprises to purchase natural gas directly from gas giant Gazprom and other Russian companies.

Archpriest Vsevolod Chaplin, head of the Moscow Patriarchate's Synodal Department for Relations between the Church and Society, said in a letter to First Deputy Prime Minister Viktor Zubkov that this request was made in response to a letter in which head of Ukraine's Union of Chemical Enterprises Oleksy Holubov asked Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia for help in this issue, according to the www.interfax-religion.ru website.

Father Vsevolod also drew Zubkov's attention to the fact that "enterprises of Ukraine's chemical industry have been providing significant assistance for the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate."

"His Holiness frequently receives petitions calling on the authorities to heed various requests. The Synodal Department for Relations between the Church and Society forwards such petitions to the authorities to inform them of the needs and wishes of the authors of such requests," Father Vsevolod said.