Message from Mr José Manuel Durão Barroso, President of the European Commission, to the Holy Synod of the Russian Church

It is with great sadness that I learned of the death of His Holiness Alexei II, Patriarch of Moscow and of all Russia, and I would like - in my personal name and in the name of the European Commission - to send my condolences.

I would particularly like to commemorate His Holiness' leadership and his determination to promote interreligious dialogue. His death is a great loss for the Russian Orthodox Church and for Europe.

President of the European Commission
José Manuel Durão Barroso