Pope Francis is the first pope to visit Mongolia
The Holy Father was greeted by the Foreign Minister and then went to the building where he will spend the night
Sep 01, 2023 • 11:53
Reproduction: Vatican Media
From the newsroom, with Vatican news
Pope Francis arrived in Mongolia this Friday (September 1st). Upon disembarking from the plane, Francisco was greeted by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ms. Batmunkh Battsetseg. In Mongolia, whoever holds this position is responsible for receiving foreign heads of state.
There were no speeches, just the guard of honor with soldiers in the traditional red, blue and yellow uniforms (colors of the Mongolian flag) and greetings from the respective delegations. Also present was Dom José Luis Mumbiela Sierra, Bishop of the Diocese of the Holy Trinity of Almaty, as President of the Bishops’ Conference of Central Asia.
Welcome to the Apostolic Prefecture
The Pope and the minister then went to the VIP room for a short conversation. Eventually they drove to the Ulaanbaatar Apostolic Prefecture, south of the city, in the Khan Uul district, one of the region’s most important industrial areas. Upon his arrival at the town hall, the pope was greeted by a group of elderly and sick people, then some children greeted him at the entrance and offered him flowers.
Jorge Mario Bergoglio will reside in the fourstory orange brick building, on which a blue welcome banner has been displayed in recent days, during his stay in Mongolia. The official welcoming ceremony will take place on the morning of Saturday (September 2) in Sukhbaatar Square, where the State Palace is located and where the meeting with civil authorities will take place, the first official and public engagement of Pope Francis’ trip.
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