Pope Francis meets with President of Cyprus

Pope Francis holds a private audience with the President of Cyprus, Nikos Christodoulides, who then discusses the war in the Holy Land at the Secretariat of State.

By Vatican News

Pope Francis welcomed Nikos Christodoulides, President of the Republic of Cyprus, for an audience at the Vatican Apostolic Palace, according to the Holy See Press Office.

The audience lasted around 35 minutes and included the customary exchange of gifts.

The Pope gifts the President a Medal of the Holy Spirit and a copy of his message for the 2024 World Day of Peace.

President Christodoulides presented Pope Francis with a wooden and metal sculpture of an olive tree.

Group photo of the audience

International relations

Following the audience with the Pope, President Christodoulides met in the Secretariat of State with Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin, accompanied by Msgr. Daniel Pacho, Under-Secretary for the Multilateral Sector of the Section for Relations with States and International Organizations.

During the cordial discussions held at the Secretariat of State, both parties expressed their appreciation for the positive bilateral relations and discussed several open questions concerning Church-State relations.

The discussions then shifted to various current challenges in the country, with a particular focus on the issue of migrants.

Afterwards, there was an exchange of views on the international situation, with special attention paid to ongoing conflicts, including the situation in Israel and Palestine.