The first ever meeting between Bulgarian Patriarch Maxim and the Chief Mufti of Muslims in Bulgaria Selim Mehmed lasted nearly 20 minutes at the Holy Synod building on Tuesday. Religion, religious studies, similar property problems and the impact of various religious teachings which fragment traditional Eastern Orthodox Christianity and traditional Islam were on the agenda.

The Chief Mufti said that the meeting should have been held much earlier. “The formula of religious co-existence has already been found by people across the country and we only had to reaffirm it, that is why I am here,” Mehmed said, describing the meeting as “useful.”