Church of Cyprus condemned Russia's "unchristian attack" on the Patriarchate of Constantinople

The Holy Synod of the Orthodox Church of Cyprus has protested against the recent criticism by the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) of the Patriarchate of Constantinople and Patriarch Bartholomew personally. According to Orthodoxia News Agency, at a meeting on February 12, 2026, the Synod called the attack «unexpected and contrary to Christian ethos,» expressing unrestricted admiration for the role of the Patriarchate of Constantinople and undivided support for His Holiness.

In its statement, the Synod of the Church of Cyprus emphasized its deep respect for the Patriarchate of Constantinople. It noted that «all Ecumenical Councils took place on the territory of the Ecumenical Patriarchate and under its primary responsibility» and its contribution to the formulation of Christian doctrine and the formation of Church governance was unique and indisputable. This, according to the Synod, would have to be received with great respect by the Churches founded and organized much later and which received Christianity and autocephaly from the Patriarchate of Constantinople.

The centuries-long ministry of the Patriarchate, as the document says, has earned it the primacy of ministry in the Orthodox Church, making it «the Sun that radiates the Eastern light to the whole West» and an unfailing measure of the dogmatic purity of the Orthodox Church. Today the Ecumenical Patriarchate, according to the Synod, is the voice of the Orthodoxy of peace and reconciliation, human rights and ecological sensitivity, playing a pioneering role in inter-Christian and inter-religious dialogues, as well as in the fight against religious fundamentalism and for the salvation of the planet.

In this regard, as noted in the Church of Cyprus, the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service has no right to criticize the Patriarchate of Constantinople and accuse Patriarch Bartholomew of interfering in the affairs of other Local Churches.

Recall that Metropolitan Emmanuel of Chalcedon, the hierarch of the Patriarchate of Constantinople, made comments on the recent statement of the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) regarding Patriarch Bartholomew. According to him, the Patriarchate of Constantinople has never closed the door to dialog, especially with regard to the Ukrainian church issue.