Pope Leo XIV on Friday, June 13, 2025 received President Joseph Aoun of Lebanon in a private audience in the Apostolic Palace.

Following the audience, President Aoun met with Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Vatican Secretary of State, who was accompanied by Monsignor Mirosław Wachowski, Under-Secretary for Relations with States.

According to a statement from the Holy See Press Office, “During the cordial discussions at the Secretariat of State, reference was made to the good bilateral relations, with particular appreciation expressed for the traditional and constant role of the Catholic Church in Lebanese society.”

The need for peace in the Middle East

The statement continued: “As the conversation continued, the hope was expressed that the country, through the stabilization and reform process, would experience a new season of political harmony and economic recovery,

enabling it to strengthen the ideals of coexistence among faiths and the promotion of development that characterize it”.

Finally, the statement notes that “The necessary and pressing need to foster the pacification of the entire Middle East region was addressed."