Rinkevics invites Pope Leo XIV to visit Latvia

RIGA - President Edgars Rinkevics met with Pope Leo XIV at the Vatican and, during the meeting, invited the Pope to visit Latvia.

Rinkevics also met with Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Secretary of State of the Holy See, the president's advisor Martins Dregeris informed LETA. During the meeting, Rinkevics and Parolin discussed bilateral relations, including cooperation between Latvia and the Catholic Church, as well as regional security and support for Ukraine in its fight against the aggressor state Russia.

Rinkevics expressed his appreciation for the Holy See's role in efforts to bring back Ukrainian prisoners of war and deported children. "Latvia strongly advocates for the return of all unlawfully displaced and deported children to Ukraine, as well as holding Russia accountable for the crimes it has committed," the president emphasized.

Rinkevics and Parolin also discussed the situation in the Middle East and the conflict with Iran. Latvia supports a solution that will prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons, restore the flow of goods through the Strait of Hormuz, halt existing threats to shipping in the Red Sea, and end the suffering of civilians.

This is the president's first meeting with Pope Leo XIV since the pope's election on May 8, 2025 as the 267th Bishop of Rome. Pope Leo XIV, whose real name is Robert Francis Prevost, was born in Chicago on September 14, 1955. He is the first pope from the Order of Saint Augustine.