A Meeting Between Metropolitan Alexander and the Ambassador of France to Kazakhstan, S. Giogé, Took Place in Almaty

On July 16, 2025, a meeting was held at the Spiritual, Cultural, and Administrative Center of the Kazakhstan Metropolitan District, named after Metropolitan Joseph (Chernov), between the Head of the Orthodox Church of Kazakhstan, Metropolitan Alexander of Astana and Kazakhstan, and the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of France to the Republic of Kazakhstan, Sylvain Giogé.

The meeting was preceded by the French ambassador’s visit to the historic and spiritual landmark of the country – the Ascension Cathedral. With the blessing of Metropolitan Alexander, the tour for the distinguished guest and his delegation was conducted by Priest Georgy Sidorov, Head of the Administrative Secretariat of the Head of the Metropolitan District. He spoke to the diplomat about the history of the cathedral’s construction and its contemporary life. Before the cathedral’s relics – among them a gift from His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Rus’, the icon of the “Image Not Made by Hands of the Lord Jesus Christ”, and a gift from Metropolitan Alexander – the Theodorovskaya-Almaty icon of the Most Holy Theotokos, an exact “measure-for-measure” replica of the revealed wonderworking icon of the Queen of Heaven – the guests lit candles.

The meeting between Metropolitan Alexander and Sylvain Giogé took place in the fireplace hall of the Spiritual and Cultural Center. Present at the meeting were: Protopriest Evgeny Ivanov, Rector of the Almaty Orthodox Theological Seminary; Priest Georgy Sidorov, Head of the Administrative Secretariat of the Head of the Metropolitan District; and Embassy staff – Political Advisor T. Najjar and Press Attaché A. Sagimbayeva.

The archpastor congratulated the head of the diplomatic mission on France’s national holiday – Bastille Day. Sylvain Giogé noted that since the previous celebration of the National Day, relations between France and Kazakhstan have continued to develop and expand dynamically. According to the ambassador, the past year was marked by a major event – the state visit of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Kassym-Jomart Kemelevich Tokayev, to France, which became a confirmation of the deepening strategic partnership established in 2008.

The diplomat shared his positive impressions of the visit to the Ascension Cathedral. His Eminence spoke to the guest about the details of the large-scale professional restoration of the cathedral carried out from 2017 to 2020. It was noted that all work was performed under the supervision of the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Kazakhstan and UNESCO, involving top-level specialists from Kazakhstan, Russia, Serbia, Italy, Germany, and France. The archpastor emphasized that the President of the country, K.-J.K. Tokayev, called the completed grand project “a second birth of Kazakhstan’s national shrine.”

During the meeting, the archpastor told Sylvain Giogé about the life of the Metropolitan District, which this year celebrates a special milestone – the fifteenth anniversary of the establishment of its canonical and legal status – and about the preparations for the upcoming visit to Kazakhstan of the Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church, His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Rus’, who will arrive in the Republic to participate in the Eighth Congress of Leaders of World and Traditional Religions.

The interlocutors discussed the relevance and importance of the Congress of Leaders of World and Traditional Religions. It was noted that the forum – regularly held in the capital of Kazakhstan since 2003 – has established itself as a unique platform for implementing interfaith and interethnic dialogue. By mutual agreement, the forum’s activity, which constructively develops relationships among leaders and prominent representatives of various cultures and confessions, contributes to social cohesion on the basis of moral and spiritual values – offering a worthy response to the crises, challenges, and destructive phenomena of modernity.

They also discussed the interaction between the two leading confessions of Kazakhstan – Hanafi Islam and Orthodox Christianity. Metropolitan Alexander emphasized the consolidating role of the President of the Republic, K.-J.K. Tokayev, in the development of state–confessional and interreligious dialogue in Kazakhstan, noting his particular attention to the spiritual and moral component of public life.

The ambassador shared with His Eminence Metropolitan Alexander the main facts of his biography and spoke about his service at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of France, as well as his diplomatic postings in Russia, Azerbaijan, Turkey, and Poland.

The Head of the Metropolitan District invited the diplomat to attend the opening of an exhibition dedicated to a unique historical and archaeological relic – the Shroud of Turin – which will be held on August 1 at the Palace of Peace and Reconciliation in the capital of Kazakhstan. The exhibition is being organized through the joint efforts of the Orthodox Church of Kazakhstan, the international charitable foundation Kirche in Not (Aid to the Church in Need), the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Astana, and the Order of Malta.

Metropolitan Alexander and Sylvain Giogé discussed the prospects for cooperation between the Metropolitan District and the French diplomatic mission in implementing joint educational, cultural, and outreach programs.

The head of the diplomatic mission accepted the Metropolitan’s invitation to visit the main cathedral of Kazakhstan – the Dormition Cathedral – as well as the administrative and spiritual–cultural center named after the Equal-to-the-Apostles Cyril and Methodius in Astana.

As a token of the meeting, Metropolitan Alexander presented Sylvain Giogé with the photo album The Ascension Cathedral and Bible books published in the Kazakh language – the Gospel of Matthew, the Psalter, and the Proverbs of Solomon. The archpastor noted that the work of translating the Bible into Kazakh continues and is well received by many Kazakh citizens, regardless of nationality or religious affiliation. Another gift from the hierarch to his guest was an illustrated edition of his scholarly work Christianity in Central Asia.

At the conclusion of the meeting – held in a warm atmosphere – the parties exchanged wishes for success in their good works and initiatives.