Representatives of Vietnam and the Holy See held a bilateral meeting in the Vatican to discuss the current situation of the Catholic Church in the Southeast Asian nation.
A press release from the Holy See Press Office said that the meeting on September 12, in the Vatican, “took place in an atmosphere of friendship, trust, and mutual respect.”
The meeting was co-chaired by Le Thi Thu Hang, head of the Vietnamese delegation and Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, and Msgr. Mirosław Wachowski, head of the Holy See delegation and Under-Secretary for Relations with States.
“Both sides acknowledged the positive contributions of the Church to the overall development of Vietnam, in the spirit of living out the Gospel in the world by being good Catholics and good citizens,” the press release described.
The two parties also expressed satisfaction with their progress since the 11th Meeting of the Vietnam-Holy See Joint Working Group in May 2024.
“The two sides underlined the importance of further promoting their bilateral relations through high-level exchanges, and agreed to continue holding regular Meetings of the Joint Working Group,” said the Holy See.
The Vietnamese delegation also met Pope Leo XIV and paid courtesy visits to Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin and Secretary for Relations with States and International Organizations, Archbishop Paul Gallagher.
Bilateral relations between Vietnam and the Holy See were interrupted in 1975. It began to be rebuilt in 1990. Pope Benedict XVI appointed a non-resident papal representative to the country in 2011.
In July 2023, the two nations reached an agreement to appoint a resident papal representative of the Holy See in Vietnam, a direct result of the 10th Vietnam-Holy See Joint Working Group.
Pope Francis appointed Polish Archbishop Marek Zalewski to the position, who has been serving as the apostolic nuncio to Singapore since 2018.
Radio Veritas Asia (RVA), a media platform of the Catholic Church, aims to share Christ. RVA started in 1969 as a continental Catholic radio station to serve Asian countries in their respective local language, thus earning the tag “the Voice of Asian Christianity.” Responding to the emerging context, RVA embraced media platforms to connect with the global Asian audience via its 21 language websites and various social media platforms.
Latest News
