ATHENS, July 23. /TASS/. Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis held talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin on the phone on Wednesday, discussing the situation in the Mediterranean, bilateral relations and Turkey’s decision to convert the Hagia Sophia museum into a mosque, the Greek prime minister’s press office said.
"The conversation focused on bilateral relations, on the Eastern Mediterranean and the region in general as well as on the issue of Hagia Sophia cathedral’s conversion into a mosque. The event is a challenge to the entire Christian Orthodox world," the statement says.
On July 10, the Turkish Council of State invalidated Mustafa Kemal Ataturk’s 1934 decree that had bestowed Hagia Sophia with its museum status. Later in the day, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan signed an order declaring Hagia Sophia open for Muslim worship. Local Orthodox Churches, including the Russian Orthodox Church, voiced their regret over the decision, along with UNESCO.
Hagia Sophia is a Byzantine-era architectural monument. The cathedral was constructed between 532 and 537 AD by a decree from then Emperor Justinian I of Byzantium. After the fall of Constantinople in 1453, the cathedral was converted into a mosque. In 1935, following the decree of the Turkish government signed by Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the founder of the modern Turkish state, the building was transformed into a museum. White plaster covering Christian mosaics and murals were removed. In 1985, the building was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site.