After the Divine Liturgy, on July 18, 2026, in the Cathedral Square of the Holy Trinity Sergius Lavra, His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia met with a delegation from the Patriarchal Exarchate of Southeast Asia at the Church of St. Filaret the Merciful in the Patriarchal Chambers of the Lavra. 
The delegation that arrived in the Russian Federation includes representatives of Orthodox communities, including the clergy of the Singapore Diocese, which unites the parishes of the Russian Orthodox Church in Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea and East Timor.
Russian Russian Orthodox Church's purpose is to worship at the shrines of the Russian Orthodox Church, participate in divine services, get acquainted with the historical and spiritual centers of Russia, as well as strengthen fraternal ties between the Orthodox communities of the Russian Orthodox Church in Southeast Asia and Russia. 
Patriarchal Exarch of Southeast Asia Metropolitan Sergius of Singapore and Southeast Asia, welcoming the Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church, expressed gratitude to His Holiness for his support and concern for the development of church life in one of the most densely populated macro-regions of the world.: "Let me thank you on behalf of the entire Patriarchal Exarchate of Southeast Asia, on behalf of the clergy and laity of Indonesia, Malaysia, and Papua… These are faraway countries, but they are important." 
According to the exarch, the total population of the countries included in the sphere of pastoral responsibility of the Patriarchal Exarchate of Southeast Asia, namely Singapore, East Timor, Vietnam, Indonesia, Cambodia, North Korea, the Republic of Korea, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Papua New Guinea, Thailand and the Philippines, is approaching one billion.
"Our Church is everywhere. May you bless our entire Church in that region through these pilgrims," said Metropolitan Sergius, asking for the Primate's blessing.
"Thank you, my Lord! Dear fathers, brothers and sisters! I am very glad to see you," His Holiness Patriarch Kirill said in response. "I am one of those few who have traveled most of the globe in their position, and not as a tourist. I have also been to your region, in that distant time when it was impossible to imagine that Orthodoxy would be there and that the Patriarch of Moscow would meet clerics and laity from that region." 
"The creation of the Orthodox Church and the strengthening of Orthodoxy in this very important region is your mission," the Primate stressed. — Thank you for carrying out this mission with dignity. For our part, we will do everything possible to support you on this life-saving and very important path for the spiritual enlightenment of your people." 
His Holiness congratulated Metropolitan Sergius on his namesake Day and presented him with a travel Gospel.
The Primate of the Russian Church gave copies of his book "Freedom and Responsibility: in Search of Harmony" to all members of the pilgrimage delegation. Human Rights and Personal Dignity" in English, describing the reasons and content of this book: "The reason for writing this book was as follows. In Western culture and in Western politics, concepts such as freedom and human rights were very often used. At the same time, Orthodox Christians, including Russia, were often criticized: there is no freedom or human rights there. At some point, I decided to respond to these critics. And he wrote a book called Freedom and Responsibility in English." 
"There really can be no freedom without responsibility. Freedom without responsibility — for people, for your people, for your country, for everything that you are responsible for — turns into lawlessness and leads to the loss of the moral principles of human life. This is exactly what we are now seeing in many Western countries," the Primate noted. 
In conclusion, His Holiness Patriarch Kirill also handed over commemorative medals and icons to all participants of the meeting.