The head of the Russian Orthodox Church says relations with the Roman Catholic Church must improve before he would agree to a visit from Pope John Paul II.
The pope, who traveled to Ukraine in 2001, has long expressed a desire to also visit Russia, but the Russian Orthodox Church is wary, accusing the Vatican of trying to win new converts in the former Soviet Union.
"Our meeting with the pope may take place only if the problems that have clouded the relationship between our churches are overcome," Patriarch Alexy II said in an interview published Friday in the daily Gazeta
He said that after the pope's trip to Ukraine, the relations between the two churches got worse. Greek Catholics in western Ukraine, who retain Eastern-rite rituals but recognize the pope's supremacy, "increased their expansion into traditionally Orthodox eastern and southern Ukraine," Alexy II said.
"We would not like a papal visit to Russia, if it were judged feasible, to proceed according to the 'Ukrainian scenario,'" Alexy II was quoted as saying.
Disagreements between the Russian Orthodox Church, the dominant Christian faith in Russia, and the Vatican have deep historical roots. Since the fall of communism, the Russian church has accused Catholic officials of trying to poach converts.
Catholics have sought to recover churches that belonged to them before the 1917 Bolshevik Revolution and attract new followers, but their flock in Russia remains tiny — about 600,000 of the nation's 144 million people.
"To our deep regret, there are still not enough grounds to speak about changes in the Vatican's position and any positive improvements in Orthodox-Catholic dialogue," Alexy II was quoted as saying.
Russian President Vladimir Putin met with the pontiff in the Vatican last month. Putin says he wants to help end the dispute between the churches, but adds that Russia will defend its faith and identity.