The head of the Russian Orthodox Church's Department for External Church Relations will meet with Pope Leo XIV

A meeting between Pope Leo XIV and Metropolitan Anthony (Sevryuk) of Volokolamsk, head of the Department for External Church Relations of the Russian Orthodox Church, is scheduled for July 26, 2025. According to sources, the meeting will take place in the Vatican. This was reported by ANSA.it.

It is reported that this will be Pope Leo’s first audience with Metropolitan Anthony, who represented Patriarch Kirill at the funeral of Pope Francis. Sources added that the Pontiff intends to resume dialogue with the Moscow Patriarchate after tensions related to the Russian-Ukrainian war.

Earlier, Metropolitan Anthony of Volokolamsk explained why the Vatican cannot be considered a neutral platform for peace talks between Russia and Ukraine. According to the bishop, the main problem in this case and in relations between the Russian Orthodox Church and the Roman Catholic Church is the existence of a structure of Ukrainian Greek Catholics who are causing great harm to the Ukrainian Orthodox Church.