AMBASSADOR'S LUNCH WITH METROPOLITAN KIRILL

C O N F I D E N T I A L MOSCOW 003011 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/21/2017 TAGS: PGOV KDEM PHUM PINR SOCI RS SUBJECT: AMBASSADOR'S LUNCH WITH METROPOLITAN KIRILL Classified By: Ambassador William J. Burns. Reason: 1.4 (d). -------------- Summary -------------- ¶1. (C) At a June 18 private lunch, Russian Orthodox Metropolitan Kirill related to the Ambassador his concerns about social issues, in particular the large gap between rich and poor and Russia's lagging regions. He described reaction, both in the West and in Russia, to the recent merger of the Russian Orthodox Church (ROC) with the ROC abroad as frequently overblown. Kirill praised Roman Catholic Pope Benedict as more pragmatic than his predecessor. Kirill worried about corruption's corrosive effects on Russian spiritual life. End summary. -------------- Rich-Poor Gap -------------- ¶2. (C) Russian Orthodox Church Metropolitan Kirill reviewed with Ambassador at a June 18 lunch a series of social issues with which he was particularly concerned. Although there had been much lip service paid recently to the yawning gap between rich and poor in Russia, Kirill worried that too little was being done to actually address the problem. Kirill suggested that the GOR should consider a replacement of the current flat tax with a graduated tax and, perhaps, the introduction of a luxury tax, as well. Russia's social safety net needed to be improved, Kirill thought. His position as Metropolitan of Smolensk gave him the opportunity to travel to one of Russia's less prosperous regions, and what he saw there concerned him. Kirill believed that the purse strings on the stabilization fund should be loosened in order to ameliorate the problems encountered by those at the bottom of society. Kirill thought the creation of the For A Just Russia party had helped stimulate debate on these issues. (In an aside, Kirill dismissed Other Russia and independent presidential candidate, ex-Prime Minister Mikhail Kasyanov as largely irrelevant to today's Russia.) ¶3. (C) In addition to the income gap, Kirill was concerned about corruption and the "petty tyranny of bureaucrats," which had increased as a result of the expansion of the bureaucracy and its prerogatives. Kirill worried that the increasing institutionalization of corruption was having a corrosive effect on the spiritual life of Russians. While he was aware that the issue was getting greater attention from the GOR, not enough was yet being done. -------------- Significance of Church Merger Overblown -------------- ¶4. (C) The reaction to the recent union of the Russian Orthodox Church with its overseas counterpart had been overblown, both by those in Russia, who saw it as proof of the church's resurgence and by those outside Russia, who thought they saw in the merger an elaborate conspiracy. The merger, said Kirill, "doesn't make much difference" one way or the other. ¶5. (C) Kirill saw more possibilities for development of ROC - Roman Catholic relations during the papacy of Benedict. While his predecessor, John Paul, had been smart, his Polish roots predisposed him to be too critical of Russia. John Paul had overstressed the importance of a visit to Russia as a way of improving relations between the churches. Benedict was more careful, Kirill reported, and had indicated he would be willing to meet at any time and in a third country if that were more appropriate. One complicating factor was the health of Aleksiy, which Kirill described as "not great." -------------- Thinking Through Gay March -------------- ¶6. (C) The May 27 gay rights parade had caused Kirill to think much about "issues of human freedom." Although the Metropolitan said nothing definitive to the Ambassador, it was clear he was wrestling with the issue, and the dilemmas it posed for the church. BURNS