The Greek website orthodoxia.info published excerpts from a three-hour conversation between Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew and the Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church, Patriarch Kirill, during a meeting on Phanar on August 31.

As the conversation implies, the key issues were Ukraine and the provision of autocephaly to the Ukrainian Church. Although after the conversation, Patriarch Kirill tried to hint at journalists that the Ukrainian question was somewhat secondary, Yaroslav Kotsyuba, expert of the Institute of World Politics wrote on his Facebook page.

During the dialogue, the Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church tried to persuade Patriarch Bartholomew that it was not worth to provide autocephaly to the Ukrainian Orthodox Church because the “coup d’état” took place on the Maidan (Independence Square) and now, they say, the new illegal government is trying to strengthen its positions through autocephaly. At the same time, Kirill is convinced that the pro-Moscow forces will topple the Ukrainian authorities.

As Kotsyuba remarks, Patriarch Bartholomew fairly parried when he asked the Kremlin agents: Why are you not able to freely travel to Ukraine? Is it not because you do not have support there?

"And completely annoying for the Ecumenical Patriarch was Metropolitan Ilarion Alfeyev's statement (Chair of the Department of External Church Relations of the Russian Orthodox Church) that Poroshenko haв allegedly bribed Constantinople. Bartholomew warned him that he would face a church ban if unable to prove these false charges. “If you lie, you will not get away with it,” said the Patriarch of Constantinople. Alfeyev went on justifying himself. Like, he did not say that it was Petro Poroshenko, but the schismatics who traveled to Istanbul with their hands being not empty. Bartholomew asked Kirill to restrain Hilarion who was inflicting serious damage to the relations between Constantinople and Moscow.

But the most important thing articulated in this talk was that Ukraine had been and remained the canonical territory of the Ecumenical Church.

Thus, the issue of providing autocephaly falls entirely within the competence of the Mother Church. Patriarch Bartholomew let Patriarch Kirill know that the process has already been launched and the first stage of coordination and discussion has completed,” Yaroslav Kotsyuba wrote.

On August 31 this year, at the Phanar, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew received the delegation of the Russian Orthodox Church led by Patriarch Kirill. The Ecumenical Patriarch told the Russian counterpart that the 25-year split in Ukrainian Orthodoxy was coming to an end. The Patriarchate of Constantinople was ready to grant autocephaly to the Ukrainian Church, “It will not be the creation of a new split, but joining the Church.”