US Prez Trump meets Pope, calls it an ’honour’

Mangalore Today News Network

May 25, 2017: US President Donald Trump met Pope Francis at the Vatican on May 24, Wednesday during the first face-to-face meeting of the two leaders, who symbolise starkly different views of the world.

 

Trump arrived for a short private audience at the Apostolic Palace along with his wife Melania, daughter Ivanka and son-in-law Jared Kushner.

The US President was greeted warmly by Francis before they sat down for the private meeting at which only a translator was present.

Trump could be heard saying it was "an honour" to be there during the meeting. At one point, the Pope jokingly asked Melania, "what she fed her husband", the Guardian reported.

The seemingly genial meeting offered no hint of the rocky start to the pair’s relationship last year, when the Argentinian pontiff questioned then-candidate Trump’s Christian credentials, the report said.

US Secretary of State Rex W. Tillerson and National Security Adviser H. R. McMaster were among Trump’s delegation to the Vatican.

After Trump’s private meeting with the Pope, Melania and others were invited to join the pair in the papal library.

Melania and Ivanka wore black dresses and veils, traditional Vatican attire for women, considered respectful, though not mandatory.

After arrival, Trump was greeted by Georg Gänswein, a German archbishop and prefect of the papal household. Details of the traditional gifts exchanged by Trump and Francis have not yet been revealed, the report said.

For Trump, who landed in Rome after stops in Saudi Arabia and Israel, the audience in the Vatican caps a tour of the ancestral homes of three of the world’s great monotheistic religions.

Trump and the Pope have diametrically opposite views on issues as varied as immigration, climate change and arms sales.

Trump will later meet Italian President Sergio Mattarella and Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni. He will then fly to Brussels for a NATO summit.

Later, Ivanka is expected to visit Sant’Egidio, a Rome charity centre devoted to migrants. Melania will visit the Bambino Gesu children’s hospital.

At an earlier news conference, the Pope said he wouldn’t judge Trump before their meeting or seek to convert him on political issues. Instead, he’d look for areas of agreement.

The US President vowed to help Israelis and Palestinians achieve peace, as he ended the Middle East leg of his tour on Tuesday.

Trump had begun his foreign trip with a two-day stop in Saudi Arabia over the weekend, urging Muslim countries to take the lead in combating radicalisation. He will fly to Brussels later in the day for a NATO summit, and will wrap up his tour on Friday after the G7 summit on the Italian island of Sicily.

The Vatican said there had been an “exchange of views” on international issues, while Mr Trump said they had had a “fantastic meeting”.

The two men have in the past clashed on issues such as migration, climate change and a Mexico-US wall.

Mr Trump is now in Brussels for talks with Nato and EU officials.

He will also hold meetings with Belgium’s King Philippe and Prime Minister Charles Michel.


The US leader began his foreign trip with a two-day stop in Saudi Arabia over the weekend, urging Muslim countries to take the lead in combating radicalisation.

Mr Trump and his entourage arrived at the Vatican just before 08:30 local time, in a meeting that was arranged at the last minute.

Correspondents say Mr Trump seemed subdued during their initial meeting, while Pope Francis was not as jovial as he sometimes is with world leaders.

The two men appeared much more relaxed at the end of their 30-minute private meeting.

The Vatican said later that they shared a commitment to “life, and freedom of worship and conscience” and expressed hope that they can collaborate “in service to the people in the fields of healthcare, education and assistance to migrants”.

On international affairs, their “exchange of views” covered the “promotion of peace in the world through political negotiation and interreligious dialogue”, and highlighted the need to protect Christian communities in the Middle East.

After the meeting, they exchanged gifts. Mr Trump gave the Pope a boxed set of writings by the civil rights leader Martin Luther King.

The Pope gave Mr Trump a signed copy of a message he delivered for World Peace Day, along with some of his writings about the need to protect the environment.

He also presented him with a small sculptured olive tree, telling Mr Trump through an interpreter: “It is my desire that you become an olive tree to construct peace”.

Mr Trump responded by saying: “We can use some peace.” He also said he would read the texts the Pope gave him.

After the meeting, Mr Trump tweeted: “Honor of a lifetime to meet His Holiness Pope Francis. I leave the Vatican more determined than ever to pursue PEACE in our world.”

Mr Trump also met Italy’s president and prime minister while in Rome.