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 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.

Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin

On the same day, President Thưởng and his spouse, together with the high-level delegation from Việt Nam, met with Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin.

President Thưởng meets with Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin in Rome, Italy. — VNA/VNS Photo

During the meeting, President Thưởng shared with Cardinal Parolin Việt Nam's foreign policy and religious policies, emphasising that Việt Nam continued to improve the legal framework for religious activities of the people and religious organisations.

President Thưởng expressed his hope that Cardinal Parolin would continue to pay close attention to the activities of the Catholic community in Việt Nam, thereby contributing to the positive development of the Việt Nam-Vatican relations.

Cardinal Parolin praised Việt Nam's achievements in ensuring religious freedom for all religions, including Catholicism. He also welcomed the role of the Việt Nam-Vatican Joint Working Group in enhancing mutual understanding and trust and finding consensus to address differences through dialogue.

Cardinal Parolin noted that Việt Nam was increasingly playing an important role in the Catholic Church, with over 7.2 million Catholics in Việt Nam and he expressed how the Vatican encourages the Catholic community in Việt Nam to actively contribute to the country's development and the missions of the churches.

President Thưởng emphasised the significance of the Vatican's role in global issues and expressed his desire for the Vatican to continue contributing to conflict resolution; preserving peace; promoting sustainable development; and fostering unity, friendship, cooperation, and development among nations and religions worldwide.

The Holy See affirmed its support for all initiatives for world peace and expressed agreement in favour of peacefully resolving disputes in the East Sea (internationally known as the South China Sea) based on international law, including the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) of 1982.

On the occasion of Thưởng's visit to the Vatican on Thursday, on the basis of the 10th Session of the Joint Working Group between Việt Nam and the Holy See on March 31, 2023 in the Vatican, and with the desire to continue advancing bilateral relations, the two sides officially announced that the Government of the Socialist Republic of Việt Nam and the Holy See concluded the “Agreement on the Status of the Resident Papal Representative and the Office of the Resident Papal Representative in Việt Nam”. — VNS