ROC wanted to deprive the Red Cross of the rights to the emblem

The Russian Orthodox Church (ROC) has proposed to apply to the government with a request to cancel the exclusive right of the Russian Red Cross (RKK) to use its emblem. This was reported to Kommersant by the head of the legal department of the Moscow Patriarchate Abbess Ksenia Chernega.

The reason was the new rules according to which religious organizations must obtain permission from the RCC to use its symbols. According to Abbess Xenia, this also applies to the red cross on the clothes of the sisters of mercy.

The new rules for the use of Red Cross and Red Crescent emblems came into force on September 1, 2026. They allow the use of symbols of medical organizations that provide free assistance to citizens, as well as military medical units of the Armed Forces and law enforcement agencies. Other organizations, including religious ones, need to obtain permission from the RCC.

“The cross is the religious symbol of all Christian denominations. The religious symbol of Islam is the crescent. No individual or legal entity can monopolize the right to use religious symbols, she said.

The issue, according to the publication, was discussed on November 3 at a meeting of the Interreligious Council of Russia (ICR), which is headed by Patriarch Kirill. Abbess Xenia proposed to prepare an appeal to the government. The head rabbi of Russia, Adolf Shaevich, who is a member of the council, suggested in an interview with Kommersant that the initiative would be supported, since there were no objections at the meeting.

The Russian Red Cross is one of the oldest humanitarian organizations in Russia, founded in 1867. It is part of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement. The organization provides assistance to victims in emergency situations, supports socially vulnerable groups of the population, first aid training and donor development. In 2025, Russia adopted a special law that consolidated the legal status of the RCC.

The Ministry of Health, which participated in the preparation of the law on the RCC, explained that the resolution regulates the use of the cross as a religious symbol, but a specific emblem of the Red Cross, the requirements for which are enshrined in GOST. The protection of this emblem is provided for by the Geneva Conventions of 1949 and additional protocols to them.

“This decree does not limit the use of the cross as a Christian symbol for liturgical or other purposes,” the ministry said.

Earlier, the Russian Orthodox Church opposed the disappearance of crosses from images of state symbols and Orthodox churches. In May 2025, criticism was caused by the emblem of the Kremlin, on which the crosses over the crowns of the double-headed eagle were replaced with diamonds. After that, the crosses were returned to the emblem on the website and in the telegram channel of the presidential administration. Press Secretary of the President Dmitry Peskov explained the former image by its scaling. According to him, when the coat of arms is reduced, crosses turn into diamonds.

At the same time, Abbess Ksenia said that the Russian Orthodox Church, together with deputies, prepared a bill prohibiting the depiction of religious objects without their symbols. It entered into force on July 31 of the same year. In March 2026, deputies proposed to introduce fines for its violation - up to 300 thousand rubles. for legal entities.