President Nikolic receives Patriarch Kirill

President of Serbia Mr. Tomislav Nikolic has indicated today, in conversation with the Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia that Christianity is facing great challenges, but the Serbian Orthodox Church has a great support in the Russian Orthodox Church, and Serbia in the Russian Federation.

Russia suffered by helping Serbia in the First World War, and one should  repeat that from time to time. Russian tsar risked his state and people and entered the war for which he otherwise needed another three years of preparation, Nikolic indicated while talking about entering the Russian Empire into the Great War, when Austria-Hungary declared war to Serbia in 1914.

He also noted that the Red Army in the Second World War liberated many countries and cities, but only in Serbia it met an army that fought against the Nazis.

Nikolic pointed out that the Serbian and Russian peoples are connected by the same faith and blood.

Patriarch Kirill said that Russia has always been with the Serbian people, in joy as well as in sadness.

"In the most recent times as well - when you were bombed - we were with the Serbian people with our hearts, and we are now together going through what the Serbian population in Kosovo and Metochia has been experiencing - we are helping in the way we can and to the extent we can, and we hope that justice and peace will ultimately prevail in Kosovo and Metochia," the Patriarch added.