President meets with Vatican Secretary of State, Cardinal Pietro Parolin

On the afternoon of July 27, right after the meeting with the Pope, President Vo Van Thuong and his wife, along with the high-ranking Vietnamese delegation, met with the Holy See's Prime Minister, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, at the Vatican.

President Vo Van Thuong meets with the Holy See's Prime Minister, Cardinal Pietro Parolin. (Photo: Vatican Media)

At the meeting, the two sides discussed Vietnam-Holy See relations and the Catholic situation in Vietnam.

Sharing with the Prime Minister and Cardinal Parolin about Vietnam's foreign and religious policies, President Vo Van Thuong emphasized that the Party and State of Vietnam always create favorable conditions for religions to operate and develop in accordance with the provisions of the Constitution and laws, including the Law on Belief and Religion, and continue to perfect the legal framework for religious belief activities of people and religious organizations.

President Vo Van Thuong expressed his hope that Prime Minister, Cardinal Parolin, with his important responsibilities at the Holy See and who understands and has good feelings for Vietnam, will continue to pay more attention to the activities of the Catholic community in Vietnam, thereby contributing to promoting the increasingly positive development of Vietnam-Holy See relations.

Prime Minister, Cardinal Parolin highly appreciated Vietnam's achievements in ensuring religious freedom for all religions, including Catholicism. The Vatican Prime Minister thanked Vietnam for its positive recognition of the contributions of the Catholic Church in Vietnam, especially in the fields of charity, education, health care, and vocational training. The Vatican Prime Minister welcomed the role of the Vietnam-Vatican Joint Working Group in enhancing mutual understanding and trust; and agreed to resolve differences through dialogue.

The two sides discussed Vietnam-Holy See relations and the Catholic situation in Vietnam. (Photo: Vatican Media)

Prime Minister, Cardinal Parolin of the Vatican said that Vietnam is playing an increasingly important role in the Catholic Church with more than 7.2 million Catholics, affirming that the Holy See always encourages Catholics and dignitaries in Vietnam to follow the direction of "accompanying the nation", "good Catholics are good citizens", and actively contribute to the development of the country and the Church.

President Vo Van Thuong emphasized the importance of the Holy See's role in global issues and hoped that the Holy See would continue to promote its voice, contribute to conflict resolution, maintain peace, promote sustainable development, and promote solidarity, friendship, cooperation and development among peoples and religions in the world. The Holy See affirmed that in the spirit of supporting all peace-building initiatives in the world, the Vatican agreed to support the settlement of disputes in the East Sea by peaceful means on the basis of international law and the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.

President Vo Van Thuong and Prime Minister, Cardinal Pietro Parolin discussed the two sides' approval of the Regulations on the operation of the Holy See's Permanent Representative and Permanent Representative Office in Vietnam. The President said that Vietnam will continue to support the Holy See in completing the necessary procedures to open the Holy See's Permanent Representative Office in Hanoi and support the activities of the Permanent Representative in Vietnam.

At the end of the President's visit to the Vatican, the two sides issued a joint press release on the approval of the Regulations on the operation of the Permanent Representative and the Office of the Permanent Representative of the Holy See in Vietnam.

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