The administration of President Joe Biden held meetings on Monday with the spiritual leader of Orthodox Christians, based in Istanbul, reaffirming its support for him amid tensions with Turkey. The meetings were held with Patriarch Bartholomew I of Constantinople (81 years old) after he spent a night in a Washington hospital due to feeling unwell, according to the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese.
Bartholomew conducted a closed meeting with Biden following discussions with Secretary of State Antony Blinken. Blinken stated during his meeting with Bartholomew, "The United States strongly advocates for the principle of religious freedom." The U.S. State Department noted that they discussed the status of the "Halki" theological school, which was once the main theological institution of the Eastern Orthodox Church before being closed under a Turkish law in 1971.
The U.S. State Department's statement emphasized, "Secretary Blinken stressed that the reopening of the Halki theological school will remain a priority for the Biden administration." Bartholomew expressed gratitude for American support for the Patriarchate and "for its ideas and values that we are trying to protect while simultaneously struggling to remain in our historic city of Istanbul."
Tensions characterize the relationship between the Biden administration and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, who threatened last week to expel the American ambassador and other Western diplomats over a statement concerning human rights. It is noted that Bartholomew is a Turkish citizen and met with the Turkish ambassador to Washington. However, Erdoğan, who is aligned with the Islamist movement, stirred public outrage last year in Greece, which is Orthodox-dominated, when he converted the Hagia Sophia—once the central church of the Byzantine Empire—from a museum into a mosque.
Former President Donald Trump maintained friendly relations with Erdoğan, yet his administration emphasized religious freedoms. In an unexpected move, Mike Pompeo, Secretary of State under Trump, visited Istanbul on his last international trip, where he met with Bartholomew but did not meet with Turkish officials.
