Vatican City, Oct 25, 2005 / 22:00 pm
The Vatican’s Secretary for Relations with States, Archbishop Giovanni Lajolo, is in Moscow this week for meetings with both government officials and Church leaders.
This is the first visit by Archbishop Lajolo to Russia and according to reports, he will be meeting with Russian foreign minister, Serguei Lavrov, representatives of the Duma and Orthodox Metropolitan Kirill of Smolensk.
Lavrov said the meetings would be part of the “continuation of the dialogue” between the Holy See and Russia, which “has assumed a stable character after the establishing of diplomatic relations in 1990.”
During his visit, Archbishop Lajolo will also participate in a Eucharistic Congress at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Moscow.