19/09/2014 21:59
Armenian president meets Pope Francis in Vatican
During his official visit to the Vatican, Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan had a face-to-face conversation with Pope Francis, according to the presidential press service.
President Sargsyan and Pope Francis indicated with satisfaction the high level of relations between Armenia and Vatican, stressing that they have a solid foundation based on the same Christian system of values and ideology.
The interlocutors underlined the importance of frequent high-level mutual visits and contacts in recent period, which bears evidence of both sides’ readiness to keep the bilateral relationship at the center of their attention.
Serzh Sargsyan and His Holiness exchanged opinions about close cooperation of the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin and the Catholic Church.
At the meeting Serzh Sargsyan officially invited the Pope to visit Armenia in 2015 (on the 100th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide). Pope Francis gladly accepted the invitation, saying that it is his sincere wish to visit Armenia.
The Armenian president then met with the Vatican’s Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin and discussed with him the current state and development prospects of bilateral relations.
The sides noted with satisfaction that relations of Armenia and the Vatican have recently been developing dynamically in various spheres of cooperation.
The urgent problems of Christians and the Christian heritage in the Middle East were also discussed during the meeting. President Sargsyan expressed Armenia’s willingness to become involved in that work.
Issues of the Karabakh conflict settlement were also addressed. The Armenian president thanked Cardional Parolin for the Vatican’s balanced position on the Nagorno Karabakh problem.
The president of Armenia also met today with Cardinals of the Curia.