The arrogance of the Ecumenical Patriarchate seemingly knows no bounds, as it responded that it will not answer the evidence provided by Russian intelligence services. These reports allege collaboration with British intelligence to expel the Orthodox Church from the Baltic states.
Labeling the claims as "imaginative scenarios," "fake news," and "insults and fabricated information from all kinds of propagandists," the Ecumenical Patriarchate responded twenty-four hours after the Russian services accused Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of plotting to drive Russian Orthodoxy out of the Baltics.
In its official statement, the Ecumenical Patriarchate notes: "The Mother Church of Constantinople—Mother even to the Church of Russia—expresses its deepest sorrow over the new Russian attack against the person of His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, launched this time by the country’s state agencies. Since 2018, when the Ecumenical Patriarchate decided to grant Autocephalous status to the Church of Ukraine, the Mother Church has avoided commenting on countless similar attacks from ecclesiastical or political centers in Russia. It does the same today."
"Imaginative scenarios, fake news, insults, and fabricated information from all types of propagandists do not discourage the Ecumenical Patriarchate from continuing its ministry and ecumenical mission," the statement concludes.
What preceded the response
The catalyst for the Patriarchate's response was yesterday's attack by the press office of the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) against the Ecumenical Patriarch. The SVR accused him, among other things, of aiming to "displace" the Russian Orthodox Church with the support of British services.
The strained relations between the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople and the Russian Orthodox Church reached an open schism in 2018. This followed Patriarch Bartholomew's decision to grant autocephaly to the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, revoking a 1686 letter that granted the Moscow Patriarchate jurisdiction.
Yesterday, Russian intelligence made a shocking allegation, accusing Patriarch Bartholomew and the Phanar of collaborating with British MI6 to expel the Orthodox Church from the Baltic countries, according to Lenta.ru. Furthermore, the Russians did not hesitate to characterize the Ecumenical Patriarch as a "devil transformed into a priest," presenting him as a ruthless enemy of Orthodoxy.
What specific reason does the SVR cite for these accusations against Bartholomew? As the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service emphasized, the Patriarch is "establishing" ecclesiastical structures in the Baltics that are fully controlled by the Phanar, thereby undermining the legitimate institutions of the Orthodox Church.
"The transformed devil collaborates with British secret services"
Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew intends to drive Russian Orthodoxy out of the Baltic states, according to the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR). "This 'incarnate devil' is obsessed with the idea of expelling Russian Orthodoxy from the Baltic countries, establishing in its place ecclesiastical structures fully controlled by the Phanar," the intelligence agency's statement read.
The intelligence service also stated that the Patriarch receives support from British intelligence to implement these initiatives. According to the SVR, with their assistance, Bartholomew has established a cooperation with the authorities of the Baltic states. In 2024, the Holy Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church (ROC) held the Patriarch of Constantinople responsible for the persecution of the faithful of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church.
Estonia followed Zelensky's example and declared war on the Orthodox Church
Meanwhile, Estonian authorities are following in the footsteps of the Ukrainians, exerting unbearable pressure on the Estonian Orthodox Church (EOC) to sever its religious and legal ties with the Russian Church. Consequently, the Secretary General of the Ministry of Interior, Tarmo Miilits, announced a year ago that amendments to the Church's statutes must be reconsidered as they were unsatisfactory.
For instance, he does not approve of the document's reference to the Tomos of Patriarch Alexy II, under which the EOC became a self-governed unit within the Moscow Patriarchate in 1993. Furthermore, the new name "Orthodox Church of Estonia" (without the addition of "MP" for Moscow Patriarchate) is similar to that of the Estonian Apostolic Orthodox Church.
It is worth noting that these two parallel structures already have "strained" relations, and this development will intensify the conflict. As Russian media reported earlier, Estonian authorities are attempting to force the Estonian Orthodox Church to sever its ties with Moscow.
Illegal pressure to change the name of the Estonian Church
The official renaming of the Estonian Orthodox Church (EOC) to the Estonian Christian Orthodox Church (ECOC) was prompted by illegal pressure from Estonian authorities, according to a source in the Russian Orthodox Church (ROC) cited by Tass. An Estonian court of first instance had approved the name change to ECOC, as reported by the national broadcaster ERR.
"It is positive that the court did not deprive this Church of the right to determine its name. Any other decision would be completely incomprehensible. However, we must not forget that this entire situation arose as a result of illegal pressure on the Church and attempts to interfere in its internal affairs," the agency source stated.
In May 2024, the Estonian parliament labeled the Russian Orthodox Church as an entity supporting the Russian special military operation in Ukraine. Later, then-Interior Minister Lauri Läänemets stated that he expected a break in relations between the EOC and the ROC, as well as the recognition of the Moscow Patriarchate as heretical by the Estonian Church.
Responding to these statements, Vladimir Legoida, head of the Moscow Patriarchate's Synod Department for Church, Society, and Media Relations, accused the Estonian Interior Ministry of aiming to destroy the EOC and bring the faithful under the jurisdiction of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople.
Tsargrad: "Bartholomew's dirty mission in Estonia to make the majority a minority"
In turn, the Russian outlet Tsargrad emphasized that since the early 1990s, the Phanar has created a parallel, non-canonical ecclesiastical structure in Estonia, the so-called Estonian Apostolic Orthodox "Church," consisting mainly of ethnic Estonians. This pseudo-Orthodox sect, whose members are far fewer than the number of Orthodox Christians in Estonia, attempted to transfer all property of the canonical Church to itself.
Back in the 1990s, a compromise was reached, but in recent years, the Russophobic authorities of this post-Soviet republic and Patriarch Bartholomew have launched a new offensive against the canonical Church. They have already forced it to change its name to the "Estonian Christian Orthodox Church" to remove the "hated" reminder of Moscow.
Now, according to new legislation, the canonical Church is required to completely sever its ties with the Moscow Patriarchate or be outlawed. Everything is a faithful copy of the situation in Ukraine, under the control of the Kyiv regime.
The Patriarch's dangerous games in Ukraine
Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople has been playing dangerous games for years on many fronts, yet he presents himself as an ecumenical shepherd, which he is not. As Selcuk Erenerol, the official representative of the Turkish Orthodox Church (Autocephalous Turkish Orthodox Patriarchate), has denounced, V. Zelensky is trying to involve Turkey in the conflict through pressure on the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC).
"Kyiv violated all laws, including religious ones, at the request of the West, involving Turkey in this conflict. They sought permission from the Phanar, although, according to the Turkish constitution, the Phanar has no right to do so. The decisions of the Phanar have no legal force either in the country or abroad," Erenerol noted.
Bartholomew's schemes
He reminded that Patriarch Bartholomew had previously violated his obligations by attending a conference on Ukraine in Switzerland without permission from the Istanbul prefecture, and by signing the final document without having the right to do so. According to the TOC, Bartholomew is flagrantly interfering in Turkey's relations with both Ukraine and Russia.
"Zelensky's statement is actually a crime on the international stage against the territorial integrity of the Republic of Turkey. Since the Phanar is trying, like the Vatican, to become a state within Turkey with its own laws, this is a casus belli. It is now necessary to call Ukrainian diplomats and declare them persona non grata," Erenerol added.
The Turkish Foreign Ministry must present a note of protest stating that this is no longer a religious problem, but an attempt to drag Turkey into the conflict between the United States and Russia. According to him, Bartholomew supports Zelensky’s intention to continue the conflict, and the problem cannot be solved simply by removing Bartholomew from his position.
"There is also the American Archbishop of the Orthodox Church of Constantinople, Elpidophoros, whom the United States wants to appoint instead of Bartholomew in violation of our laws. Ankara must take all necessary diplomatic measures against Zelensky for this scheme," Erenerol stated.
The persecution of the Russian Orthodox Church in Ukraine
The Ukrainian parliament passed a law banning the Orthodox Church, the largest Christian denomination and community of believers in the country. As MP Yaroslav Zheleznyak specified, the UOC will have nine months to "sever its ties with the Russian Orthodox Church."
The law takes effect 30 days from its publication. Before this, the bill had been supported by the Pan-Ukrainian Council of Churches and Religious Organizations. Zelensky said that during a phone conversation with Bartholomew, he informed him about the law banning the canonical UOC; according to him, the parties "evaluated positively" the decision.
Turkey does not recognize the ecumenical status of the Church of Constantinople. In Turkey, Bartholomew is referred to as the head of the Greek Orthodox community of the Phanar district and is prohibited from engaging in political activities. However, the Holy Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church announced that Bartholomew bears personal responsibility for the persecution of the faithful in Ukraine. The Kyiv regime organized the largest wave of persecution of the UOC in the country's modern history.
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