VUČIĆ PRESENTS ORDER TO PATRIARCH KIRILL IN MOSCOW

BELGRADE, May 8 /SRNA/ – Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić today in Moscow presented the Order of the Republic of Serbia, First Class with Grand Necklace, to His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and all Russia for his special merits in developing and strengthening friendly relations and cooperation.

Patriarch Kirill thanked Vučić and the entire Serbian people for the honor, as well as for their kind attitude toward Russians, and for their love and support. The Russian Patriarch emphasized that Serbs and Russians are bound by shared history, a common struggle, and one faith. "We have never waged war against each other, we have never betrayed one another. This is a unique case in the entire European context. Even today, Serbia and Russia - despite being geographically separated and having no common borders - preserve their spiritual and cultural unity," Patriarch Kirill stressed. He went on to say that when speaking of Serbian–Russian relations, the heart speaks of truly brotherly peoples and brotherly churches, as proven throughout history. "In this sense, I believe this is a unique case, at least in Russia's relations with other countries," emphasized the Patriarch of Moscow and all Russia. Vučić, who awarded Patriarch Kirill the Serbian Order for his special merits in developing friendly relations and cooperation between Serbia and the Moscow Patriarchate of the Russian Orthodox Church, said it was a great honor to confer Serbia's order on the head of the Russian Orthodox Church. "In my conversation with the Russian Patriarch, I had the opportunity to learn much and to hear about the difficult situation of the Russian Orthodox Church, especially in other countries near the Russian Federation, and also to hear kind words about cooperation with the Serbian Orthodox Church and the Serbian state," Vučić said. He added that he conveyed greetings from Serbian Patriarch Porfirije, noting that it was a great honor for him to present Serbia's Order to Patriarch Kirill, which is very important and contributes further to the development of Serbian–Russian relations. Patriarch Kirill received Vučić at the Danilov Monastery - the spiritual and administrative center of the Russian Orthodox Church - and spoke with him prior to the Order-presentation ceremony. Vučić posted on Instagram that it was a great honor to tour the monastery alongside Patriarch Kirill, which, in his words, stands as a living testament and treasury of the Russian people's arduous history. "In the hardest of times, it was a refuge for the displaced and the hopeless, a light in the darkness, and a source of spiritual strength that gave courage to face great challenges and trials," Vučić noted. He concluded by saying that the Danilov Monastery is a magnificent structure that reminds us never to forget the shared spiritual roots of the Serbian and Russian peoples.