President Lee Jae Myung on Monday met with Pope Leo XIV at the Vatican, on the second leg of his Europe visit. He was scheduled to depart for France later in the day, where he will attend the G7 meeting.
After his audience with the pope, Lee was to subsequently meet Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin.
Lee held his first talks with the pope since his inauguration in June 2025. The last meeting between a South Korean president and the pope was when President Moon Jae-in met later Pope Francis in October 2021.
According to director of national security Wi Sung-lac, Lee spoke about #the# South Korean people’s desire for peace on the Korean Peninsula and the administration’s peace process during his meeting with Leo, adding Leo expressed his interest and support for South Korea’s continued peace and reconciliation efforts.
Wi also said Lee extended an official invitation to Leo for World Youth Day. The pope is expected to travel to Seoul to attend the global gathering of young Catholics in August 2027.
Speculation has already started in Korea that the pope could meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un on the occasion of his visit to the peninsula, which remains technically at war since the 1950-53 Korean War ended in an armistice, in line with the Lee administration’s pursuit of a thaw in inter-Korean relations.
