Pope Leo XIV received Prime Minister Robert Abela of Malta on December 15.
“Marking 60 years of diplomatic relations between Malta and the Holy See, we discussed peace, climate change, humanitarian challenges, and our shared commitment to dialogue and human dignity,” Prime Minister Abela said in a social media post about the “meaningful meeting.”
Following the audience, the prime minister met with Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Secretary of State of His Holiness, and Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, Secretary for Relations with States and International Organizations. The parties discussed Church-state relations, migration, the Middle East, and Ukraine, according to a Vatican statement.
Catholicism is the state religion of the Mediterranean nation of 470,000 (map). 92% of residents are Christian (90% Catholic), and 3% are Muslim.