Deputy Prime Minister Truong Hoa Binh meets with Pope Francis

Deputy Prime Minister Truong Hoa Binh expressed his joy at visiting the Vatican and thanked the Pope and the Holy See Prime Minister for the warm welcome given to the Vietnamese delegation.

The Deputy Prime Minister conveyed the thanks of Acting President Dang Thi Ngoc Thinh and the family of the late President Tran Dai Quang for the Pope's condolences and sending representatives to pay their respects to President Tran Dai Quang.

Informing the Pope about Vietnam's recent outstanding socio-economic achievements and international integration, the Deputy Prime Minister emphasized that these are the results of the efforts of all Vietnamese people, including the important contributions of the Vietnamese religious community. The Deputy Prime Minister affirmed that Vietnam is constantly improving its policy of respecting and ensuring freedom of belief and religion for all Vietnamese people, creating conditions for religions to operate according to the Charters and Regulations of religious organizations in accordance with the provisions of law. This is clearly demonstrated through the development in all aspects and the vibrant and rich activities of religions, including the Catholic Church of Vietnam.

At the meeting, Pope Francis welcomed Deputy Prime Minister Truong Hoa Binh's visit, considering it an important new development step for the two sides to enhance mutual understanding, thereby further promoting relations between Vietnam and the Holy See in the coming time.

The Pope expressed his affection for Vietnam and recalled the good memories of his meetings with Vietnamese high-ranking leaders over the years. Expressing his joy at the positive developments in the relationship between Vietnam and the Holy See, the Pope thanked the Government and authorities at all levels of Vietnam for their attention in facilitating the activities of Vietnamese Catholics and the Holy See's non-resident Special Envoy to Vietnam.

The Pope emphasized that the Catholic Church in Vietnam needs to continue to better implement the direction of "Living the Gospel in the heart of the nation" of the Vietnamese Bishops' Council and the Pope's teachings that "good lay people are also good citizens", "Vietnamese Catholics must accompany the Vietnamese people to build a prosperous and happy country", and at the same time encourage Catholic laity and dignitaries in Vietnam to participate in common activities, actively contributing to the development of the country and the Church.

The Deputy Prime Minister affirmed that Vietnam highly appreciates and respects the instructions and teachings of the Pope and the Holy See to the Vietnamese Catholic community and hopes that the Holy See will guide the Church and the Vietnamese Catholic community to well implement the teachings and messages of the Pope. Vietnam is ready to work with the Holy See to promote and strengthen relations between the two sides.

At the meeting with Vatican Prime Minister Pietro Parolin, Deputy Prime Minister Truong Hoa Binh emphasized that Vietnam always encourages and creates conditions for religions, including Catholicism, to operate equally and in accordance with the law. At the same time, it values ​​and wishes to promote relations with the Holy See on the basis of respecting the principles of relations between countries, meeting the aspirations and interests of both sides.

Vatican Secretary of State Pietro Parolin was pleased to welcome Deputy Prime Minister Truong Hoa Binh and the Vietnamese delegation, emphasizing that the Holy See always encourages the Catholic Church in Vietnam to actively contribute to the country's construction and development.

Deputy Prime Minister Truong Hoa Binh and Vatican Prime Minister Parolin exchanged views on a number of important issues in the relationship between Vietnam and the Holy See, affirming the need to continue maintaining high-level contacts as well as regular dialogue at all levels.

The two sides discussed and agreed on directions to strengthen relations between Vietnam and the Holy See, moving towards upgrading relations between Vietnam and the Vatican from the level of non-resident Special Envoy to the level of resident Special Envoy in the coming time and assigned the Vietnam - Holy See Joint Working Group to actively prepare for the 7th Round meeting to discuss specific contents.

Deputy Prime Minister Truong Hoa Binh conveyed Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc's invitation to Prime Minister Parolin to visit Vietnam at an appropriate time. Prime Minister Parolin happily accepted the invitation and asked him to convey his thanks to Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc.

Deputy Prime Minister Truong Hoa Binh's visit and working visit to the Vatican was a great success./