During an official visit to Moscow from 24-27 January, the President of the Conference of European Churches (CEC), Jean-Arnold de Clermont, met His Holiness, Patriarch Alexis II who headed the CEC from 1986 to 1992. During their meeting discussion focused on the role of the CEC on the European ecumenical scene, the presence of the Churches in the European Union, the third Ecumenical Assembly, the problems of proselytism lamented by the Russian Orthodox Church and the interconfessional situation in Ukraine. “I was impressed said de Clermont by the vitality of the Russian Orthodox Church. The Patriarch expressed his support for the efforts being made by the CEC to develop dialogue between the Orthodox and Protestant Churches and confirmed his intention to pursue dialogue with the Catholic Church”. At the end of the meeting, the CEC delegation was received by Metropolitan Kirill.
