In Romania, women with trousers were not admitted to enter orthodox churches 2 or 3 decades ago, at least in the countryside

Are you kidding me? An ignorant person who can't even respect the basic respect for a head of a state? Says a lot about Russian clowns running their government. No wonder their population is declining.

From an Halachic view it would have been enough to design a skirt without the slit. If anyone is confused 'pants' in English is what you wear under your trousers or skirt, while to Americans pants is the same as trousers, which you wear over your 'underpants'. American women have kept some of the British meaning when they speak of 'panties'.