A Reuters report that President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has instructed officials to hold talks on reopening the Greek Orthodox Halki Seminary, which has remained closed since 1971, along with his recent meeting with Greek Orthodox Patriarch Bartholomew and previous remarks made alongside U.S. President Donald Trump at the White House, has renewed questions over the future of the historic theological school.
"The fundamental issue is not whether the seminary should reopen, but under what legal framework it would operate," Zakir Avşar, a professor from Ankara Hacı Bayram Veli University, told Daily Sabah. "If such an institution were established outside Türkiye's higher education system as an autonomous or semi-sovereign entity, it could erode the state's authority to regulate and oversee education."
According to a report by Reuters, President Erdoğan has reportedly instructed officials to begin talks on reopening the Greek Orthodox Halki Seminary.
The move followed Erdoğan's June 16 meeting with Bartholomew at the Presidential Complex in Ankara.
The meeting, which was held behind closed doors, has fueled speculation that efforts to reopen the historic seminary may be gaining momentum.
