Pope Francis begins first visit to Mongolia, a nation of 1,400 Catholics on China’s doorstep
- Pope’s Mongolia trip seen as keeping the door open for improved Vatican ties with Beijing and Moscow
- Buddhist-majority Mongolia, China’s neighbour, has one of the world’s smallest Catholic communities
Pope Francis arrived in Mongolia on Friday for the first papal visit to the Asian nation, as he sent a message of “unity and peace” to neighbouring China in a bid to improve ties.
The 86-year-old pontiff’s trip through Monday to the Buddhist-majority nation is a gesture of support for the tiny community of Catholics numbering about 1,400 – but at the same time a strategic move to improve Vatican ties with neighbours China and Russia.
Francis, who arrived Friday morning local time following a nine-hour journey from Rome, told journalists aboard the papal plane that the vast, sparsely populated country of Mongolia was one that “can be understood with the senses”.
Asked by a journalist whether he found diplomacy difficult, the pope answered: “Sometimes you need a sense of humour”.
The plane passed over Chinese airspace and the pontiff, following custom, sent a telegram to President Xi Jinping, bearing “greetings of good wishes” to him and the Chinese people.