Patriarch Kirill (Gundyaev) wants to meet with Pope Francis.
This was announced on December 22 by the chairman of the DECR MP Metropolitan Hilarion (Alfeyev), Portal-Credo reports.
"Pope Francis has repeatedly expressed his desire to meet with Patriarch Kirill, including at my last meetings with him," the Metropolitan said. “For his part, Patriarch Kirill would also like to meet with Pope Francis, because more than five years have passed since the previous meeting, which was the first, and many new questions have arisen."
The Metropolitan said that the meeting is scheduled for 2022.
"We have discussed specific dates and specific places, but we cannot announce them yet, because they require an additional study on both sides," said the head of the DECR MP.
According to him, the pontiff and Patriarch "will not talk about any theological issues that separate Orthodox and Catholics, but will talk primarily about how Christians can survive in the modern world, where they face persecution, violence, and risk their lives."
On the morning of December 22, the Pope received Metropolitan Hilarion in an audience.