Pope Leo XIV Arrives in Turkey on First Foreign Trip

Pope Leo XIV arrived in Ankara on Thursday afternoon, the first stop on a four-day visit to Turkey, marking the Supreme Pontiff’s first foreign travel amid a tense situation in the Middle East.

1. Arrival Details and Political Meetings

• Arrival: The papal plane landed in Ankara at 12:20 local time. He was welcomed upon disembarking by Turkish Culture Minister Mehmet Nuri Ersoy.

• Meetings: The Pope met with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. He is scheduled to deliver a speech to government officials, civil society representatives, and the diplomatic corps before heading to Istanbul in the early evening.

• The Message: The Pope told the 80 journalists accompanying him from Rome to Ankara: "I have waited a long time for this trip because of what it means to Christians, and it is also a beautiful message to the whole world," stressing the need to strive for peace and unity. He also wished Americans "a happy Thanksgiving."

• Ankara Program: The Pope will also visit the mausoleum of modern Turkey's founder, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, a national shrine and symbol of the secular republic.

2. Ecumenical Focus and Unity

• Religious Segment: After the politically focused activities of the first day, the visit takes a religious turn on Friday, with a celebration in Iznik (ancient Nicaea) to mark the 1700th anniversary of the first Ecumenical Council in 325 AD, a foundational event for Christianity.

• Joint Prayer: On the shore of Lake Iznik, the Pope will participate in a joint ecumenical prayer with Orthodox priests, at the invitation of the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople, Bartholomew I, who is the most prominent representative of the divided Orthodox Church in dialogue with the Vatican.

• Global Attention: The visit, the first outside the Holy See for Pope Leo XIV, is receiving wide global media attention amidst ongoing negotiations to end the war in Ukraine.