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Vladimir Putin made this Thursday, July 4 a flash visit to Italy and the Vatican. The day began at the Vatican for a private audience with Pope Francis, the third of the pope's pontificate. A long face-to-face meeting which testifies to the solidity of the bilateral relations between Moscow and the Holy See. A visit on the eve of a delegation of the Ukrainian Catholic Church to Rome.
With our correspondent at the Vatican, Éric Sénanques .
It has become a habit for the Russian president to keep Pope Francis waiting. It was almost an hour late that Vladimir Putin came to the apostolic palace. The pontiff and his guest had a private conversation for nearly an hour in the library of the Apostolic Palace.
On the menu of their discussions, the ecological issues, but especially the major international issues such as Syria, Ukraine or Venezuela, where Russia plays an important role. The Russian president was accompanied by his Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, who had arrived earlier to speak with the heads of Vatican diplomacy.
Vladimir Putin described his interview with François as " very substantial ". The "gift diplomacy" was interesting to follow: the Pope offered the Russian President his dedicated message for the World Day of Peace and the declaration of Abu Dhabi signed last February on human fraternity, as if to invite Moscow to work even more for peace.
This meeting, the third between Francis and the Kremlin leader has also strengthened the bilateral ties between Russia and the Vatican. Symbolically, an agreement was signed on the sidelines of today's meeting between the pediatric hospital run by the Holy See and Russian hospitals.