Media

On Monday morning, H.E. President Myriam Spiteri Debono had a private audience with His Holiness Pope Leo XIV, at the Vatican.

 

In her first comments, the President of Malta described her meeting with the Pope as a profound and significant one, during which the Pope spoke about various themes, especially the global international situation, including in the Middle East.

 

The Pope and the President also spoke about the good bilateral relations, and the cooperation that exists between the Church and the State of Malta.

 

The Pope showed particular interest in Malta. He referred to the Maltese Augustinian Province. During this discussion, the President of Malta referred to the invitation for the Pope to visit our country, which was extended to him by Prime Minister Dr Robert Abela during their meeting. The President reiterated this invitation and did not rule out that, following the visits he has planned, the Pope would visit Malta.

 

The private audience was followed by a meeting of the Maltese delegation with the Pope, which was attended by the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Tourism, Dr Ian Borg, the Maltese Ambassador to the Holy See, H.E. Frank Zammit, and officials from the Office of the President of Malta, including the Secretary to the Presidency, Moira Attard.

 

During this meeting, an exchange of gifts took place, where the President of Malta, on behalf of our country, presented a bronze relief of St. Paul, created by artist Chris Ebejer, as a gift to the Pope on the occasion of his inauguration. The Presidency had also previously made a donation through which new medical equipment was acquired for the Ambulatorio Madre di Misericordia clinic, to be used as part of the medical services offered free of charge to patients with acute material needs who go there for treatment.

 

The first patient of the Ambulatorio Madre di Misericordia to benefit from this specialized medical device was a Peruvian from the former diocese of His Holiness Pope Leo XIV.