This meeting between Pope Leo XIV and President Lee Jae-myung is the first since the Pope’s election and the President’s inauguration.
President Lee is touring Europe from the 9th to the 18th, starting with Belgium, followed by visits to Italy and the Vatican, and will attend the G7 Summit in Evian, France. He will visit the Vatican on the 14th and 15th. On the 14th, he is scheduled to participate in and deliver a speech at the “Special Mass for Peace and Solidarity” held at the Basilica of St. Paul Outside the Walls in Rome. On the 15th, he will have an audience with the Pope and subsequently meet with Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Secretary of State of the Holy See.
National Security Advisor Wi Seong-rak stated during a briefing with the press corps at the Blue House on the 5th, “We are approaching the 2027 Seoul World Youth Day (WYD), which will be the second such event held in an Asian country and the first in a nation where Catholicism is not the majority religion.” He added, “Through this visit, we will firmly establish a cooperative framework between South Korea and the Holy See to ensure that next year’s event becomes a venue for solidarity among young people worldwide.”
Director Wi continued, “During his meeting with the Pope, a symbol of world peace, and in his speech at the special Mass at St. Paul’s Basilica, President Lee will express Korea’s commitment to global peace and solidarity amid rapidly changing international circumstances,” adding, “We hope to secure the Holy See’s support for this.” He further noted, “This will serve as an opportunity to reaffirm the Holy See’s continued support and interest in peace on the Korean Peninsula.”
The meeting between the Pope and President Lee comes exactly one year after their respective inaugurations. It marks the earliest meeting with a Pope by any South Korean president since their inauguration. President Lee will visit Brussels, Belgium, on the 9th and 10th to commemorate the 125th anniversary of diplomatic relations between South Korea and Belgium, where he will hold summit meetings with Belgian and European Union (EU) officials.
He will then pay a state visit to Rome and Florence, Italy, from the 11th to the 13th, where he will hold a summit with Italian President Sergio Mattarella. In line with his Vatican schedule, he will attend the G7 Summit as an invited guest on the 16th and 17th. Director Wi said, “We expect this to contribute to establishing our status as a globally responsible power aiming for a ‘G7 Plus’ by expanding our participation in major issues facing the international community.”
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