Pope Francis is set to make his 38th Apostolic Journey to Kazakhstan in September for the VII Congress of Leaders of World and Traditional Religions, Matteo Bruni, the Director of the Holy See Press Office has confirmed. During the trip it is likely the Pope will come face to face with Patriarch Kirill, leader of the Russian Orthodox Church and a noted ally of Vladimir Putin.
The Pope had already planned to meet Kirill in Jerusalem this summer but cancelled on the advice of diplomats. The pair previously met in Cuba in 2016, the first ever meeting between the leaders of the Roman Catholic and Russian Orthodox Churches. Since the war began, the Pope has praised Ukrainians for fighting for their survival, but added the situation was not black and white, and the war was “perhaps in some way provoked”.
