Pope Francis Welcomes Iran’s President to the Vatican Meeting between the pontiff and Hassan Rouhani highlights close ties between Vatican and Iran By Deborah Ball And Francis X. Rocca
http://www.wsj.com/articles/pope-francis-welcomes-irans-president-to-the-vatican-1453808307
ROME—Iranian President Hassan Rouhani’s campaign to reintroduce Tehran to the West took a step forward with a high-profile audience with Pope Francis that focused on human rights and Iran’s role in Middle East conflicts.
The meeting—the first between a pontiff and an Iranian leader since 1999—came Tuesday on the second day of a four-day visit by Mr. Rouhani to Italy and France that is meant to cement the country’s ties with the West. The trip is the first by the Iranian president since sanctions on Iran were loosened this month in the wake of an agreement to implement key restrictions on its nuclear program.
Most of Mr. Rouhani’s visit, including meetings with Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi and French President François Hollande, is focused on jump-starting Iran’s economic relations with Europe.
But the meeting with Pope Francis is particularly significant because of the close ties the Vatican and Iran have enjoyed for decades and Iran’s desire to project an image of a tolerant country in a region beset by strife.
The pontiff and Mr. Rouhani met for 40 minutes—extraordinarily long compared with typical state meetings held by the pope. Mr. Rouhani was accompanied by a 12-person entourage, including Iran’s foreign minister.
ENLARGE The Vatican said the two discussed Iran’s role in finding political solutions to the conflict in the Middle East and stopping the spread of terrorism. The pope also raised the question of the “promotion of human dignity and freedom of religion”—sensitive topics for Iran, which has been under fire for its human-rights record.
Earlier in the day, in a speech to the Italian business community, Mr. Rouhani quoted the Quran, saying that “the church, the synagogue and the mosque must live side by side.” He added that
At the end of his meeting with Pope Francis, Mr. Rouhani asked the pontiff to pray for him. In turn, the pope said he “hope(d) for peace.”
Diplomatic relations between the Holy See and predominantly Shiite Muslim nation predate the 1979 Islamic revolution in Iran. They have long been cordial, based on mutual religious and geopolitical interests. But the countries have grown closer under the current pontificate, as the Vatican regards Tehran as playing an important role in stabilizing the Middle East.
Pope Francis spoke out against U.S. plans to launch airstrikes against Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad, for whom Iran is the primary military and financial backer, and held a prayer vigil for peace in September 2013. In early 2014, Tehran’s ambassador to the Vatican praised Pope Francis as a “virtuous figure.”
Pope Francis has frequently expressed deep concern over the violence in Iraq and Syria, and the Vatican has supported the participation of Iran in a solution to Syria’s nearly five-year-old war. The Vatican has been eager to support Mr. Rouhani and his moderate forces.
Earlier Tuesday, Mr. Rouhani indirectly addressed accusations that Tehran continues to support Islamist extremism and terrorism in the region.
“If we want to combat extremism and violence in the world, if we want to fight against terrorism, one of the paths that we have is economic development and creating jobs,” he said. In the same speech, he said Iran aims to export as much as 30% of its products in the coming years.
Some serious differences between the Vatican and Iran remain. Pope Francis has strongly denounced the death penalty, which is practiced widely in Iran. Early Tuesday, Amnesty International released a report on the dozens of minors who are on death row in Iran; in July, the group said that nearly 700 people had been executed in the first half of 2015.
Laws in Iran make provisions for some religious minorities, but the United Nations, the U.S. and other groups have been sharply critical of its record on religious freedom. While Christians are a recognized minority in Iran and largely enjoy freedom of worship, they live under certain limitations.
Dozens of Christians are in jail, many of them for holding services at their homes. Christians are required to register with government authorities, and their religious activities are carefully monitored.
Protests against Iran’s human-rights record are planned to coincide with Mr. Rouhani’s visit to Paris this week.
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