The students at Eton College, met in late August in the Kremlin with Russian President Vladimir Putin asked for a meeting in March during a trip to the Bishop of Egorievsk Tikhon (Shevkunov) at the British College. About it told the portal “Православие.Ru”.
According to Bishop, he was asked whether he would be able to help with visits to Russia and whether the students meet with Putin. He said that to achieve this will be difficult, but the question of what they will have for to do, replied, “that usually take when they want to meet with some stranger to write him a letter and ask for a meeting”. The students wrote a letter, which Tikhon called “a very polite and sincere.”
Before the press Secretary of the President Dmitry Peskov has told that the meeting was organized after the treatment of the students of Eton College to Bishop Tikhon. Peskov also noted that the meeting was not public. “It is just a conversation with no agenda-free communication. It was interesting to the President, and the guys,” — said the representative of the Kremlin.
According to Bishop Tikhon, he put the management of Eton College is aware of the students plans to meet with Putin, though The Times wrote that the students prepared for this meeting in almost total secrecy, and the College of their intention did not know.
According to the Bishop, he asked for permission from the rector of Eton to send a letter to students in the international Department of the presidential administration of Russia, and received this permission. Later, when the Kremlin has already received preliminary positive decision on the meeting with British students, to the rector of Eton, came the Ambassador of Russia to UK Alexander Yakovenko, who had informed it about the progress of the case, said Bishop Tikhon. He added that the College initially considered two options for the students ‘ visit to Moscow: as individuals and as the official delegations, but later it was decided to choose the first option. Also Tikhon added that the dates and programme of the visit was coordinated by the Russian side with the leadership of the College.
The program of the visit of the British students, according to Bishop Tikhon, visited Moscow, St.-Petersburg, sightseeing and meeting with Russian counterparts, among whom were MSU students and the Sretensky theological Seminary. At the meeting with Putin was attended by only himself and the students, says Bishop Tikhon. The Times, first told about the meeting on 1 September, said that there were also photographers. Tikhon emphasized that the meeting was private, and no TV, no Newspapers-it is not present.”
“What they spoke, we know from the stories of the boys. They published their impressions on the pages in social networks,” the Bishop said. After a meeting in the Kremlin, according to him, the British students went to St. Petersburg, where he spent a day and a half.
Answering the question about whose money hosted the arrival of British students, Bishop Tikhon said that all these students are from affluent families and one of the organizations involved in the support of student projects, paid for tickets of economy class and simple rooms”.
