Revealed why ex-CIA officer retracted his claim on a bribe to Bartholomew

Priest Alex Karloutsos (left) and Joe Biden. Photo: greekherald

The Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate informed their subscribers in a letter why former CIA officer John Kiriakou retracted his claim about a $20 million bribe to Patriarch Bartholomew for recognizing Ukrainian autocephaly.

According to the Archons’ message, Kiriakou changed his stance after a phone call from Phanar priest Alex Karloutsos in the United States.

"The Rev. Protopresbyter Alex Karloutsos, Spiritual Advisor of the Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, played a pivotal role in eliciting Kiriakou’s retraction, reaching out to him and urging him to issue a clarification of his remarks," the letter states.

Alexander Karloutsos is the official representative of the Phanar Archdiocese in the United States, Congress, government agencies, and non-governmental organizations. He is known as the "Minister of Finance" of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, the "unofficial Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Phanar," and the "gray cardinal" of Patriarch Bartholomew.

Throughout his service, Karloutsos has raised over $300 million for the Archdiocese of the Ecumenical Patriarchate. Since 2004, he has been a special assistant to the head of the Phanar. Thanks in large part to him, Patriarch Bartholomew met with three Catholic popes. In 2022, President Biden awarded Karloutsos the country's highest civilian honor, the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

As a reminder, former CIA officer John Kiriakou stated in an interview with American blogger Julian Dorey that Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew had been paid to grant create an autocephalous 'OCU'. However, he soon retracted his claim, calling Patriarch Bartholomew "his hero".

Read also