Pope Leo meets with the Prime Minister of Hungary

By Deborah Castellano Lubov

Pope Leo met on Monday with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán in the Vatican.

The Prime Minister met with the Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin accompanied by Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, Secretary for Relations with States and International Organizations.

According to the Holy See Press Office, the talks highlighted “the strong bilateral relations" between the Vatican and Hungary. Moreover, the cordial meeting addressed "appreciation for the Catholic Church’s commitment to promoting social development and the well-being of the Hungarian community, with particular emphasis on the role of the family, education, and the future of young people, as well as the importance of protecting the most vulnerable Christian communities."

Attention was also given to the situation in the Middle East and to European issues, particularly the conflict in Ukraine.

Pope Leo's predecessor, the late Pope Francis, had made his 41st Apostolic Journey abroad to the European nation of Hungary from 28-30 April 2023, where he followed a busy itinerary in the country's capital of Budapest. He also had visited Budapest in September of 2021 to preside over the closing Mass of the 52nd International Eucharist Congress.