Pope spoke of Lukashenko's son back in 2016, what
A film prepared by the Belarus 1 TV channel screened how the meeting between President of Belarus Aleksandr Lukashenko and Pope Francis was organised at the Apostolic Palace in the Vatican in 2016, BelTA reports
Minsk conducted a dialogue on peace and development in the region with the Vatican as well, and Aleksandr Lukashenko had a confidential talk with Pope Francis in 2016. The Vatican appreciates the peace-loving policy of Belarus. The Pontiff presented Aleksandr Lukashenko with three documents written by Francis and an image of an olive tree as a symbol of peace.
"Aleksandr Grigorievich Lukashenko was very warmly welcomed by the Pope. They had a lengthy conversation, which even went beyond the time limits of the established protocol. Of course, there were great prospects and hopes that the meeting would give a new impetus to the restructuring of relations between the West and our country. In 2016, the focus of negotiations, including with the Pope, was on ensuring stability and security in Europe," Sergei Rachkov, the Chairman of the Standing Committee on International Affairs of the House of Representatives, said.
Foreign Ministry spokesman Anatoly Glaz, who was the senior adviser at the Belarusian Embassy in Italy in 2014-2018, noted that the President was then accompanied by his son Nikolai. "Many ill-wishers later made some insinuations about that. As the one who was present there, I can say that the Pope welcomed the presence of the President's youngest son, they had a talk. Then at the level of protocol services, we were informed that the Pope had been very pleased to see the President coming not alone – thus showing the continuity of generations," Mr. Glaz stated.
