On November 12, 2021, the head of the Church of Constantinople, Patriarch Bartholomew, announced that he would not resign for health reasons, informs the website fosfanariou.

Patriarch Bartholomew met with the hierarchs of the Patriarchate of Constantinople in Turkey, who greeted him on the occasion of his return from America and “wished him good health and long days at the steering wheel of the church.”

The head of the Phanar expressed his “deep gratitude to the hierarchs for the respect, love and support shown by them” and denied rumors circulating in Istanbul that he intends to leave the throne for health reasons.

Earlier it was reported that during the visit of the patriarch to the United States, he was hospitalized twice, while at the Mount Sinai hospital, Patriarch Bartholomew underwent stenting.