Prime Minister Narendra Modi called on Pope Francis and discussed a “wide range of issues” aimed at making the planet better by fighting climate change and alleviating poverty during their first-ever one-on-one meeting.
Modi invited Francis, who became the head of the Catholic Church in 2013, to visit India.
The last Papal visit to India happened in 1999 when Atal Bihari Vajpayee was the Prime Minister and Pope John Paul II came.
The meeting between Modi and the Pope that was scheduled only for 20 minutes went on for an hour, said sources.
The Prime Minister’s Office said they discussed a wide range of issues aimed at making the planet better such as fighting climate change and removing poverty.
Had a very warm meeting with Pope Francis. I had the opportunity to discuss a wide range of issues with him and also invited him to visit India. @Pontifex pic.twitter.com/QP0If1uJAC
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) October 30, 2021
At the Vatican, Modi was accompanied by National Security Advisor Ajit Doval and External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar.
The Prime Minister also met Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Secretary of State of the Vatican City State.
Ahead of the historic meeting, Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla on Friday said that the Vatican has not set an agenda for the meeting. “I believe, tradition is not to have an agenda when you discuss issues with His Holiness. And I think we would respect that,” he had said.
“I am sure the issues would cover a range of areas of interest in terms of the general global perspectives and issues that are important to all of us, COVID-19, health issues, how we can work together to maintain peace and tranquillity and this is something that, I think would be the general trend in the discussions,” he had added.
