Pope Francis accepts invitation to visit Vietnam

Pope Francis has accepted the invitation from Vietnamese leaders to visit Vietnam and suggested collaborative efforts to arrange the visit.

The information was revealed after a visit led by Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee and head of its Commission for External Relations Le Hoai Trung to Italy and the Vatican on January 16-19.

This would be the first visit by a pope to Vietnam, where around 7.2% of the population are Catholic, as well as the first to Southeast Asia. Some media outlets said the visit would take place this spring.

While in the Vatican, the delegation held private meetings with Pope Francis, Vatican Secretary of State Italian Cardinal Pietro Parolin, and the Vatican’s Secretary for Relations with States, British Archbishop Paul Gallagher.

The Vietnamese official affirmed the policies of the Vietnamese Party and state regarding the guarantee of the rights to freedom of religion and belief, and updated on the development of Catholicism in Vietnam.

The meetings came months after Vietnam and the Holy See last July reached an agreement for the appointment of a resident papal representative in the country.

Following the agreement, Archbishop Marek Zalewski, the apostolic nuncio to Singapore, in December was appointed resident papal representative in Vietnam. He is expected to arrive in Vietnam later this month.