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Russia: Why Putin Is Going To The Vatican |
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Published by Radio Free Europe (USA)
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Tuesday, 13 March 2007 |
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Russia: Why Putin Is Going To The Vatican "The Russian president has already visited the Vatican three times, but this will be his first meeting with Pope Benedict XVI…. But some observers have suggested that there is a greater chance for reconciliation with Pope Benedict. First, Russia enjoys better relations with Germany, the country of the new pope's birth, than it does with the Poland of John Paul. Second, Putin, who lived in East Germany in the 1980s, speaks fluent German. Today's talks will reportedly be conducted in German... ..With the Russian Orthodox Church and the Russian Orthodox Church Abroad expected to officially reunite on May 19 after decades of schism, Putin is being seen as the "unifier of the church."…. Or as Channel One commentator Pyotr Tolstoy said recently "Moscow is the 'third Rome'" and due to the lack of a "second Rome," "relations with the 'first Rome' are very important to us."..."
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