During his visit to the Vatican, His Holiness Catholicos Aram I met with the following key Vatican officials:
1. In the absence of the Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin, His Holiness met with the Secretary for Relations with States, Archbishop Paul Gallagher. They discussed the current situation in Lebanon, the issue of the Armenian POWs held captive in Azerbaijan, and the Lebanese presidential election.
2. His Holiness met with Cardinal Kurt Koch, Prefect of the Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity, to address the current challenges facing the ecumenical movement and the theological dialogue between the Catholic and Oriental Orthodox churches.
3. Discussions with Cardinal Claudio Gugerotti, Prefect of the Congregation for the Oriental Churches, focused on cooperation between Catholic churches in the Middle East and Orthodox and Protestant churches, issues related to Christian-Islam dialogue, the return of indigenous Armenians of Artsakh under international protection, and the release of the Armenian prisoners held captive in Azerbaijan.
4. His Holiness also met with Cardinal Víctor Manuel Fernández, Prefect of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith. They emphasized the importance of re-evaluating theology in light of contemporary challenges.
During his brief visit, His Holiness was hosted by the Armenian Patriarch Raphaël Bedros XXI, who honored him with a dinner at the Levonian School of the Armenian Catholic Church. Official dinners in his honor were also held by Farid El-Khazen, the Lebanese ambassador to the Vatican, and Cardinal Koch.
Accompanying His Holiness were His Eminence Arch Mesrob Sarkissian, the Prelate of UAE and Qatar, and V. Rev. Fr. Sarkis Aprahamian, the Officer of the Middle Eastern section of the Ecumenical and Inter-religious Relations Department of the Catholicosate.
