Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung meets Pope Francis

At the invitation of the Pope, on October 18, Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung visited the Vatican and met with Pope Francis and Vatican Secretary of State Pietro Parolin.

Pope Francis welcomed Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung's visit, considering it a good opportunity for the two sides to enhance mutual understanding, thereby further promoting the relationship between Vietnam and the Holy See; expressed his admiration for the Vietnamese people; highly appreciated Vietnam's socio-economic development achievements and the increasingly improved lives of its people.

Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung meets with Pope Francis. Photo: Duc Tam – VNA

Pope Francis welcomed Vietnam's successful implementation of the policy of freedom of belief and religion and Vietnam's election to the United Nations Human Rights Council; expressed his joy at the increasingly vibrant activities of Vietnamese Catholics such as the annual conferences of the Vietnam Bishops' Council and the organization of important Catholic holidays such as the La Vang Pilgrimage Festival, the Catholic Youth Congress, etc.; and thanked the attention of the Vietnamese Government and authorities at all levels for creating favorable conditions for the activities of the Holy See's Non-Resident Special Envoy to Vietnam.

Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung affirmed that Vietnam always attaches importance to its relations with the Holy See, while consistently implementing and constantly improving the policy of respecting and ensuring the legitimate freedom of belief and religion of the people; supporting the Church and Vietnamese Catholics to continue to make active contributions to the cause of national construction, development and protection.

The two sides assessed that the relationship between Vietnam and the Holy See has had positive developments, demonstrated through high-level contacts, the effective organization and implementation of agreements at the Joint Working Group meetings as well as the activities of the Holy See's non-resident Special Envoy to Vietnam.

Pope Francis affirmed that the Vatican always advocates developing good relations with Vietnam and continues to support the Catholic Church in Vietnam to actively participate in Vietnam's socio-economic development process.

Pope Francis emphasized the need to better implement the direction of "living the Gospel in the heart of the nation," "good parishioners must be good citizens," "Vietnamese Catholics must accompany the Vietnamese people to build a prosperous and happy country," "Vietnamese Catholics must be patriots."

The two sides agreed to actively maintain dialogue and contact to strengthen good relations and guide the Church and the Vietnamese Catholic community to effectively implement the above-mentioned teachings and messages of the Pope.

The Pope expressed concern about the tense situation in the East Sea and affirmed his desire to contribute to maintaining peace, stability and security in the region and the world.

The meeting took place in an atmosphere of sincerity, frankness and mutual respect. Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung thanked the Pope and the Holy See for their warm welcome to the high-ranking delegation of the Vietnamese Government./.

According to VNA