The only Orthodox cathedral in North Korea gained new prominence when Russian President Vladimir Putin visited during his trip to Pyongyang this year, meeting the local priest and gifting an icon.

But while the Cathedral of the Life-Giving Trinity appears to be an extension of Moscow’s influence, it did not begin as the symbol of Russia-Korea friendship that it has become.

In fact, the leader of South Korea’s branch of the Orthodox church says that the ROK actually played a bigger role than Russia in the construction of the house of worship, and the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople still asserts