Pope Benedict XVI Blog

Vatican: Pope meets Israeli president

Castel Gandolfo, 6 Sept. (AKI) - Pope Benedict XVI on Thursday received Israeli president and Nobel peace laureate Shimon Peres at his summer residence outside Rome. Peres also met the Vatican's secretary of state, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone and Israel's ambassador to the Holy See, Oded Ben-Hur.

During "very cordial meetings," Peres exchanged information with the Vatican on the recent resumption of contact between Israelis and Palestinians inmoves to re-start the stalled Middle East peace process.

Washington is sponsoring an international peace conference on the Middle East scheduled for November and in Thursday's talks it was agreed that both sides at the conference should do their "utmost to satisfy the aspirations of their peoples", the Vatican said in a statement.

Relations between the Vatican and Israel were also examined during the meetings, "in the hope of a rapid conclusion to important negotiations that are still continuing and of constant dialogue between the Israeli authorities and local Christian communities," the Vatican said.

Peres - who is on his first trip abroad since becoming Israel's head of state in June. - re-extended an invitation to the pope to visit the Holy Land.

Also on Thursday, Peres met Italy's foreign minister Massimo D'Alema in Rome. The two men discussed the prosptect for Arab-Israeli peace, as well as bilateral relations, regional issues. D'Alema was this week West Bank, Egypt and Israel.

Benedict VXI on Wednesday received Syria's vice-president Faruq al-Sharaa at the end of the pontiff's weekly general audience, the Vatican said.

posted by Dr. Denice Hanley, DPM, M.Div. @ 1:22 PM