Vatican:

The Holy Father met with the Argentinian president Javier Milei for the first time, following the Holy Mass where the country’s first native-born female saint was canonized.

On Monday, the Argentine Pontiff welcomed the President for an official audience at the Apostolic Palace in the Vatican. The Pope, without the aid of a translator, spent an hour and ten minutes with the president, who was accompanied by Chancellor Diana Mondino and his sister Karina Milei, the Secretary General of the Presidency of the nation.

The Pope presided over the canonization ceremony of ‘Mama Antula’, which was held at St. Peter's Basilica on Sunday. María Antonia de Paz y Figueroa (Mama Antula), the Argentine Catholic religious sister, who established the Daughters of the Divine Savior, was born in 1730. The 18th-century lay woman promoted Ignatian spirituality, founding the Buenos Aires’ House for Spiritual Exercises.

The Holy Father described Mama Antula as a "gift to the Argentine people and also to the entire Church".

“May God bless Argentines and may the forces of heaven accompany us,” said the President's office on X upon posting the pictures of the two leaders embracing each other.

The 53–year–old, who was sworn into power in December 2023, formally invited the Holy Father to visit his homeland. He hoped that the trip would bring fruits of peace and brotherhood to all Argentines.

A press release from the Vatican said, “During the cordial discussions, which took place at the Secretariat of State, appreciation was expressed for the good relations between the Holy See and the Argentine Republic, and the will to strengthen them further.”

“The parties then addressed the new Government’s program to counter the economic crisis, attention then turned to various themes of an international character, especially ongoing conflicts and the commitment to peace among nations,” it added.

The president also met with Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin and the Secretary for Relations with States and International Organizations Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher.