Catholic-Orthodox delegation in Nicosia for a meeting with representatives of the forthcoming Cypriot Presidency of the Council of the European Union. (Photo: COMECE-CROCEU)
Yesterday, Tuesday 9 December 2025, the President of the Commission of the Bishops’ Conferences of the European Union (COMECE), H.E. Mgr Mariano Crociata, travelled to Cyprus where he joined the President of CROCEU, H.E. Metropolitan Athenagoras of Belgium, in view of the forthcoming Cypriot Presidency of the Council of the European Union, which will begin on 1 January 2026. Photo Gallery
The Catholic–Orthodox delegation was received by the President of the Republic of Cyprus, Nikos Christodoulides, the Director General at the Ministry of Education, Sports and Youth, Marios Panagidis and the Deputy Minister for European Affairs, Marilena Raouna. The meeting was held within the framework of Article 17 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU), which provides for an open, transparent and regular dialogue between the European institutions and the Churches.
Notably, this Article 17 dialogue meeting took place before the official start of the Cypriot Presidency and prior to the publication of its priorities, highlighting the importance and openness that the future Cypriot EU Presidency accords to the contribution of Churches.
Discussions proved highly fruitful. Representatives of the Catholic and Orthodox Churches had the opportunity to present their respective contributions, good practices, sensitivities and concerns regarding some of the most pressing policy issues on today’s European Union political stage. CROCEU and COMECE welcomed Cyprus assuming the rotating Presidency as a particularly significant moment, given the country’s long-standing Christian heritage and its strategic position at the crossroads of Europe, the Middle East and North Africa.
The delegation presented each authority with a document outlining the key concerns and proposals of the Orthodox and Roman Catholic Churches regarding a number of priorities expected to shape the Cypriot Presidency, including migration, peace and security, relations with neighbouring regions, water resilience and EU enlargement. Grounded in Christian social teachings and the Churches’ experience in promoting the dignity of the human person, the text emphasised the ethical dimensions inherent in many of today’s European challenges and expressed the hope that these values might inform and inspire the work of the Presidency.
During the visit, Presidents Crociata and Athenagoras also met with His Beatitude Archbishop Georgios of Cyprus, Primate of the autocephalous Orthodox Church of Cyprus, with whom they discussed the ongoing division of the island, dating back to 1974, when the Turkish army occupied the northern part of Cyprus. The talks also addressed relations between the Christian Churches, as well as relations between Christians and Muslims.
The two Presidents were accompanied by local representatives of their respective Churches, including the Maronite Archbishop of Cyprus, Mgr Selim Sfeir, who also serves as the COMECE delegate bishop for Cyprus.
It should be noted that Mgr Crociata did not meet personally with the President of the Republic. Instead, Mgr Sfeir, together with the President of CROCEU, met President Christodoulides, and on that occasion Mgr Sfeir delivered a letter from Mgr Crociata to the Head of State inviting him to participate the next COMECE General Assembly, which will be held in Cyprus on 22-24 April 2026. COMECE extended this invitation also to His Beatitude Archbishop Georgios of Cyprus.