Francesco Bongarrà

VATICAN CITY: Lebanon’s President Michel Aoun has invited Pope Francis to visit his country during a visit to the Vatican City.

A source told Arab News that during his 25-minute audience in the Apostolic Palace, President Aoun, a Maronite Christian, “brought to His Holiness a message of love on behalf of the Lebanese, and renewed his invitation to go to Lebanon.”

After the audience with the Pope, Aoun and his delegation had a meeting with the Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin, and the Vatican’s Foreign Minister Monsignor Jean Paul Gallagher.

In an interview to the Lebanese newspaper L’Orient le Jour, Aoun was quoted saying: “I await with impatience for the pope’s visit, as a message of hope for our country which will remain a model of coexistence despite the difficulties.”

The official delegation accompanying President Aoun includes Foreign Affairs Minister Abdullah Bou Habib, and the Lebanese Ambassador to the Holy See Farid Elias Al-Khazen.

Last month, Monsignor Gallagher announced that Pope Francis would travel to Lebanon before the end of this year “if conditions permit.” In January the Vatican’s foreign minister visited Beirut to prepare for a possible trip by the pontiff, a diplomatic source confirmed to Arab News.

President Aoun had previously visited Pope Francis at the Vatican in March 2017, a few months after the start of his presidential term, which is due to end on next Oct. 31.

On Tuesday, Aoun will visit Italian President Sergio Mattarella at the Quirinale Palace in Rome to discuss relations between Lebanon and Italy.