Al Nasser meets Vatican Pope

Visiting UN High Representative for the Alliance of Civilizations HE Nassir bin Abdulaziz Al-Nasser has met here with the Vatican Pope Francis. Discussions during the meeting dealt with issues related to dialogue among cultures and religions and the role played by the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations in promoting understanding between cultures as well as brokerage of soft power diplomacy to resolve ethnic, religious or cultural conflicts.  The overall situation in the Middle East, particularly the humanitarian situation in Syria, the Palestinian issue and the Ukrainian crisis, in addition to a number of international humanitarian issues of common interest were also discussed during the meeting. HE Al Nasser explained the role played by the alliance through various programs and activities in order to promote dialogue between religions and respect for cultural diversity and religious tolerance as essential elements for enhancing international peace and security.  The United Nations Alliance of Civilizations is in a position to play an important role in promoting inter-religious dialogue through communication with religious leaders and non-governmental organizations, HE Al Nasser added. HE Al Nasser also met with and Vatican Secretary of State Pietro Parolin and senior officials to discuss cooperation between the alliance and the Vatican in the field of culture and sports and inter-religious dialogue. The visit is the second by HE Al Nasser to the Vatican, his first visit was in June 2012, as president of the UN General Assembly where he met with Pope Benedict XVI.