Pope receives Russian president
in audience
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| Russian President Vladimir Putin meets with Pope Francis (Vatican Media) |
Thursday's audience is President Putin's sixth visit to the
Vatican, his third with Pope Francis
By Vatican News
Pope Francis on Thursday received Vladimir
Putin in an audience at the Vatican. It's the Russian president's
sixth visit to the Vatican, and his third audience with Pope Francis.
Following the meeting which lasted about one hour, a
communiqué released by the Holy See Press Office said the Pope received the
President of the Russian Federation in the Apostolic Palace, and that President
Putin subsequently met with the Vatican Secretary of State, Cardinal Pietro
Parolin, and with the Secretary for Relations with States, Archbishop Paul
Richard Gallagher.
Issues discussed
The communiqué continued saying that “During the cordial
discussions, both Parties expressed their satisfaction at the development of
bilateral relations, further strengthened by the protocol of understanding
signed today regarding the collaboration between the “Bambino Gesù” Paediatric
Hospital and the paediatric hospitals of the Russian Federation”.
Other issues discussed included questions of relevance to
the life of the Catholic Church in Russia.
Pope Francis and President Putin also went on to consider
the ecological question and various themes relating to current international
affairs, with particular reference to Syria, Ukraine and Venezuela.
Previous meetings
The two men met for the first time in 2013, shortly after
Pope Francis' election to the papacy; and then in 2015. The urgent need to
pursue peace in the Middle East, and especially in Syria, likewise featured
prominently in earlier conversations. The conflict in Ukraine was also a focus
of the meeting in 2015.
President Putin has also met with Pope Francis’ predecessors
in the See of Peter. His first audience with a Pope came in the Jubilee Year
2000, when he met with Pope Saint John Paul II. At the time, President Putin
noted the importance of the mission of the Holy See in the process of
integration between East and West.
Three years later, the two leaders met again to discuss a
number of issues, including the situation of Catholics in Russia, and the
ecumenical dialogue between the Holy See and the Orthodox Patriarchate of
Moscow. New initiatives for peace in the Holy Land and in Iraq were also part
of the discussion.
Benedict XVI received President Putin in 2007, the only
meeting between the two. Their conversation revolved around themes of common
interest to the Church and the Russian Federation, with particular attention to
the problems of extremism and intolerance.
Relations between Russia and the Holy See saw a turning
point in December 1989, toward the end of the Soviet era, when Mikhail
Gorbachev met with St John Paul II. It was the first meeting of a Pope with a
Soviet leader. Diplomatic relations between the Vatican and the Soviet
Union were established following the encounter.
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