President Võ Văn Thưởng, his spouse and the high-ranking Vietnamese delegation meet with Pope Francis during their visit to the Vatican on Thursday (local time). VNA/VNS Photo

HÀ NỘI – President Võ Văn Thưởng affirmed that Việt Nam consistently implemented policies that respected and ensured freedom of belief and religion and continuously improved the legal framework to facilitate religious activities, including Catholicism.

He was speaking during his visit to the Vatican on Thursday (local time), in response to an invitation from His Holiness Pope Francis.

President Thưởng said he highly praised the positive developments in relations between Việt Nam and the Vatican, demonstrated through high-level engagements over the years and the effective implementation of the Việt Nam-Vatican Joint Working Group mechanism.

He warmly welcomed the positive contributions of the Catholic community in Việt Nam to charitable, educational, healthcare, and vocational activities. He also expressed his hope for the Catholic community to continue contributing to the nation's building and development.

In turn, Pope Francis emphasised that the visit of President Thưởng provided an opportunity for both sides to exchange views on the situation of Catholicism in Việt Nam and Việt Nam-Vatican relations.

The Pope recalled fond memories of welcoming previous high-level leaders from Việt Nam and expressed his affection for the country, its people, and particularly the Catholic community in Việt Nam.

Thưởng highly appreciated the guidance of Pope Francis and the Vatican to the Catholic community in Việt Nam. He said he hoped the Pope would continue to care for and guide Catholic believers in Việt Nam to foster their bond and cooperation with the State and people for the development and prosperity of the nation.

The President stressed the role of the Vatican in addressing global issues, maintaining peace, sustainable development, protecting the environment, and safeguarding human rights.

Pope Francis reaffirmed the Vatican's desire for the Việt Nam-Holy See relations to further develop positively and encouraged the Catholic community in Việt Nam to actively contribute to the country's development and the churches' missions.

Both sides regarded the adoption of the Agreement on the Status of the Resident Papal Representative and the Office of the Resident Papal Representative in Việt Nam as an important step in the constructive development of bilateral relations. This achievement was the result of exchanges based on mutual respect, cooperation, and understanding.

President Thưởng affirmed Việt Nam's commitment to creating favourable conditions for the activities of the representative office in accordance with Vietnamese laws and bilateral agreements.

Pope Francis emphasised that the adoption of the agreement was a model of mutual trust and would serve as a foundation to further promote and expand relations in the future. – VNS