ATHENS, Greece | A Greek MP has accused Turkey of attempting to exploit Orthodox religious leaders for political gain, after the Patriarch of Jerusalem met with President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in Constantinople while Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew was abroad.
Tasos Chatzivasileiou, MP for Serres and Secretary for International Relations of New Democracy, warned that such moves risk undermining the Ecumenical Patriarchate. “Orthodox spiritual leaders should not provide Turkey with opportunities to diminish the Ecumenical Patriarchate and send misleading signals,” he said in an interview with SKAI TV.
He stressed that Ankara is seeking to “instrumentalize Orthodox spiritual leaders, on the one hand to project an image of active participation in interfaith dialogue, and on the other to weaken the Ecumenical Patriarchate.”
It is the first time an Orthodox primate of Greek origin has traveled to Constantinople without visiting the Ecumenical Patriarchate, a precedent noted with concern in Athens.
