The Russian Orthodox Church has appointed Bishop Tikhon, who in Russia has been called the “smart man” of President Vladimir Putin, to head the Crimean Diocese, The Moscow Times reports.

The Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church decided to transfer Tikhon under his lay name, Georgy Oleksandrovych Shevkunov, from the Pskov Diocese, which he headed since 2018, to the Crimean Diocese, according to a statement published by the institution.

Tikhon, who expressed support for the illegal annexation of Crimea in 2014, accompanied Putin during the visit of the head of the Kremlin to the peninsula in March this year to mark the 9th anniversary of the seizure of the territory against Ukraine.

Serhiy Aksyonov, Russia’s appointed governor of Crimea, praised “Father Tikhon” as one of “Russia’s most famous and influential bishops.”

Tikhon’s ties to the Kremlin leader have attracted Russian media attention since the late 1990s, after Putin became president and visited the monk at a monastery notorious for being frequented by FSB agents, the successor to the infamous Soviet-era KGB.

Tikhon was abbot of the Streeten Monastery in Moscow for more than ten years from 1995 to 2018, when he was appointed Bishop of Pskov.

“Putinsky Pop” was signed with the money of the Russian state

In recent years, Tikhon became known to the Russian public after official visits, during which he often accompanied Putin, including trips outside the country. At events of religious symbolism in Russia, he can often be seen with the Russian president and Patriarch of Moscow Kirill.

Despite this, neither the bishop nor Putin confirmed the spiritual connection between them.

When asked by the Russian media whether he is the president’s chaplain, Tikhon replied that “you can believe these rumors if you want, but I am definitely not spreading them.”

“I am not Cardinal Richelieu!” he added.

But an investigation published by iStories journalists last April revealed that Tikhon received more than 20 billion rubles (about $330 million) from the Russian state for his various initiatives.

Investigative journalists found that as of 2015, more than half of that amount went to fund the Russia: My History project, Tikhon’s initiative to build theme parks celebrating Russian imperialism and history. Such parks were opened in 24 cities of Russia, financed mainly from regional budgets and with the help of Gazprom.

The other half of the amount went to 6 different foundations, all connected to Bishop Tikhon.

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