“The Patriarchate is our cradle and the Turkish leadership must realise that the presence of the Patriarchate in Constantinople is one of Turkey’s most powerful ties with the EU and the West”, Greek President Prokopis Pavlopoulos said during his meeting with the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew at the Patriarchate, Monday. The Greek President expressed hope that the Turkish leadership would understand and allow the Patriarchate to do its work, referring to the reopening of the School of Halki.
Mr. Pavlopoulos is in Turkey to participate in the summit marking the 25th anniversary of the establishment of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation Organization (BSEC), at the invitation of the President of the Republic of Turkey, Recep Tayyip Erdogan.