On September 29, Metropolitan Anthony of Volokolamsk, Chairman of the Moscow Patriarchate's Department for External Church Relations, met with His Holiness Mar Ava III, Catholicos-Patriarch of the Assyrian Church of the East, at the Central Residence of the Catholicos-Patriarchs of Assyria in Erbil (the Kurdish Autonomous Region of Iraq).
Metropolitan Anthony conveyed to the Primate of the Assyrian Church of the East the greetings and well-wishes of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia. The DECR Chairman congratulated His Holiness Mark III on his 50th birthday this year and presented him with a Patriarchal staff.
During the conversation, the parties emphasized the traditionally friendly and trusting nature of relations between the Moscow Patriarchate and the Assyrian Church of the East, and the special importance of personal contacts between their Primates.
Bishop Anthony thanked Catholicos-Patriarch Mark for his fraternal support of canonical Orthodoxy in Ukraine and Estonia, and for effective bilateral cooperation on international platforms.
The interlocutors noted the effective work of the Commission for Dialogue between the Russian Orthodox Church and the Assyrian Church of the East, whose regular meeting was held recently in Erbil.
During the long conversation, a wide range of issues related to bilateral relations and the situation of Christians in the world were discussed.