(UPDATED, 15:45) Pope Francis expressed great support for the people of Ukraine and their current struggle during today’s reception of Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala. The head of the Czech government told reporters at the Vatican after leaving the Apostolic Palace, where he spent about an hour with the head of the Catholic Church. The audience was, in his own words, a “tremendous honor” for the Prime Minister.

He invited Pope Fiala to visit the Czech Republic. While he said it was too early to comment on the Vatican’s response, the prime minister was confident Francis would come if his health allowed and he had the opportunity to do so. According to the Vatican, the talks demonstrated good mutual relations and a desire to elevate them further.

The Pope and the Czech Prime Minister devoted part of the meeting to Russia’s aggression in Ukraine and the fate of Ukrainian citizens, many of whom have sought refuge in European countries, including the Czech Republic. “The Pope expressed his enormous support for the Ukrainian people and their just cause. I think it is important for us to think about the suffering of the Ukrainian people and help them in every way we can,” said the Czech prime minister at the Vatican.

According to Fiala, the Pope “clearly realized the injustice of Russian aggression”, they said they found no mutual contradictions regarding views of the situation in Ukraine during the debate with Francis.

I had a wonderful experience. The audience with Pope Francis was a great honor for me.

I really appreciate the Pope’s moral stance and support for human rights, religious freedom and support for oppressed peoples.

I talked to him about the attitude of the Czech Republic towards Ukraine and how we must not succumb to evil. pic.twitter.com/hnTTHSAqIU

— Petr Fiala (@P_Fiala) June 9, 2022

Fiala, who brought a Ukrainian embroidered shawl with a peace dove motif as a gift to the Pope today, according to her words, during her meeting with František, she recalled all the support that the Czech Republic gave Ukraine in the humanitarian and military fields.

According to the Czech Prime Minister, the Pope’s visit to Ukraine, which has been repeatedly considered, will be significant. “Without wanting to interpret Pope Francis’ views, I think that is his wish. But there must be conditions, including health conditions,” said Fiala.

The Prime Minister of the Czech Republic also met with the Vatican Secretary of State Piero Parolin, the main topic of discussion was also Ukraine, but also the mutual relations between the Czech Republic and the Vatican. “We still have open contracts that have been worked on for years or decades,” said Fiala. According to him, the government wants to close this problem.

(10:14 a.m., original report) The meeting with the head of the Catholic Church was supposed to last less than an hour, and the head of the Czech government announced earlier that he wanted to talk about the situation in Ukraine and the refugee crisis caused by the Russian invasion, but also about human rights or the upcoming Czech presidency of the European Union. . There was also an invitation by the Pope to visit the Czech Republic.

Arrive at the Vatican. pic.twitter.com/dndQfSrhhs

— Petr Fiala (@P_Fiala) June 9, 2022

The prime minister arrived just before 9:00 am at St. Damasus, where he was greeted by the mounted Swiss Guard and head of Vatican Protocol, Leonardo Sapienza. Fiala arrived with his wife Jana, who according to protocol wore a long-sleeved black dress and her head was covered by a mantilla, that is, a black veil.

Deputy Prime Minister Marian Jurečka and chairman of the ODS parliamentary club Marek Benda were also present at the meeting with the leadership of the Catholic Church. After the audience with the Pope, the Czech Prime Minister still held a meeting with the Vatican Secretary of State Pietro Parolin.

Fiala had said before his trip to Rome that the visit had political and social significance and that he wanted to help advance contractual relations between the Czech Republic and the Vatican. In addition, the audience also had a purely personal and spiritual dimension for the prime minister, for as a man of faith he considered it an extraordinary opportunity to speak personally with the head of the Catholic Church.

During today’s gathering, Pope Francis received a family Bible with reproductions of medieval illuminations and a Ukrainian embroidered shawl with a peace dove motif from the Czech Prime Minister. The Prime Minister wrote it on Twitter. The Vatican’s head of diplomacy, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, received a miniature crown jewel with Czech garnets.

I will meet Pope Francis today.

On this occasion, I will give her a shawl, which Czech and Ukrainian women sew together and which should symbolize peace and friendly relations between peoples. I took over for the Holy Father directly from Mother Marija Skyby, who participated in its creation. pic.twitter.com/meqxdyp5AS

— Petr Fiala (@P_Wallflower) June 9, 2022

Gifts for the Pope and Secretaries of State have symbolic value. The 1,024-page family Bible is meant to commemorate the end of the Year of the Family, which the Pope announced last March and which will solemnly close at the World Meeting of Families in Rome in less than two weeks.

The small crown jewel, which is a symbol of the Czech state, thanks to the use of Czech garnets, also refers to traditions of craftsmanship and jewelry.

The embroidered shawl, made jointly by Czech and Ukrainian women as a symbol of solidarity and assistance after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, will be presented to the Pope along with the Czech tricolor and the two Ukrainian colors.