On July 4, 2020, a constituent assembly of the vicariate of the parishes of the Russian tradition that remained in the jurisdiction of Constantinople after the transfer of the Western European Archdiocese to the Russian Orthodox Church was held on the surburb of Paris Meudon. As reported on the facebook page of one of the event participants, father Alexis Struve was elected the head of the vicariate.

Also, as pointed in the comments to the publication, father Vladimir Yagello was elected as “the second in leadership in the Russian vicariate”.

The decree appointing Struve to the post of head of the new vicariate within the Greek Metropolis of France was published back in February 2020. Then it became known about the appointment of the dates for the meeting of the clergy and the founding meeting of the new structure.

“This vicariate intends to continue in France the former exarchate of Orthodox parishes of the Russian tradition, disbanded by the decision of the Holy Synod of the Ecumenical Patriarchate in November 2018”, said the head of the Church of Constantinople, Patriarch Bartholomew, in a message to the meeting participants, as orthodoxie writes.

“The Mother Church of Constantinople, for the sake of conformity to the canonical tradition, decided to unite and annex the parishes of the Russian tradition to the holy metropolises in Western Europe under the Ecumenical Patriarchate. The Vicariate is currently organized and is an integral part of the Metropolis of France under the omophorion of Metropolitan Emmanuel”, according to the message of Patriarch Bartholomew, who recalled about the structure’s connection with the Church of Constantinople since 1931.

58% of the communities of the Western European Archdiocese of Orthodox parishes of the Russian tradition confirmed the decision of the General Assembly of the Archdiocese on September 7, 2019 to transfer the structure to the Russian Orthodox Church. Interestingly, the number of parishes that voted to join the Russian Orthodox Church coincided with the percentage of the General Assembly who supported this decision. About a third of the parishes of the Archdiocese remained subordinate to Constantinople, some of them chose other Orthodox jurisdictions.