Pope Francis met individually with several world leaders at the Group of Seven summit in southern Italy, including with US President Joe Biden and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
It was the first time a pope attended the annual summit, which brings the leaders of the world’s wealthiest nations together to discuss some of the most urgent current issues. Among the many topics the 13-15 June summit focused on were migration, climate change and development in Africa, artificial intelligence and the situation in the Middle East and Ukraine.
During the closed-door meeting between Biden and the pope, a short video clip released to the press showed the US president greeting the pope and remarking immediately about what an impression the pope’s words made on his family when his son, Beau, died of cancer in 2015.
Biden presented the pope with a large square ceramic dish with a reproduction of the fresco visible through the oculus of the dome of the US Capitol’s rotunda depicting George Washington exalted in heaven. “It’s not the Vatican, but…,” Biden said as the interpreters laughed. In a clip showing the end of the meeting, the pope said, “Pray for me. I pray for you.” The president replied, “I promise I do.”
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