President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko and the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, following the meeting in Istanbul, have signed an agreement on cooperation and interaction between Ukraine and the Patriarchate of Constantinople, the Ukrainian president’s press service told Interfax-Ukraine on Nov. 3.
The agreement forms conditions for “the granting of the [autocephaly] tomos to proceed absolutely in strict accordance with the canons of the Orthodox church,” Poroshenko told reporters after the meeting in Istanbul.
He called the day historical and thanked the patriarch for the warm “meeting filled with wisdom.”
“I am sure the autocephaly decision will lead to the unity and unification of all Orthodox believers in Ukraine,” Patriarch Bartholomew said after signing the document.
