The spiritual leader of Eastern Orthodox Christians, speaking Friday before a New York audience, defended his 2019 decision to recognize an independent church in Ukraine, and he denounced the Russian Orthodox Church as giving a “ringing endorsement to the invasion of Ukraine .”

Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople made the remarks before the Council on Foreign Relations during a stop on his 12-day visit to the United States. It also included meetings with President Donald Trump and other political leaders.

Bartholomew has long been critical of the Russian Orthodox Church and its support for the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

He reiterated those criticisms on Friday, saying the Russian church had endorsed the “murder of fellow Orthodox Christians by the

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