President Lee Jae Myung Meets Pope Leo XIV at Vatican

President Lee Jae Myung met with Pope Leo XIV at the Papal Palace in the Vatican on June 15, 2026. Lee is in Rome on his first European tour since taking office in June 2025. The tour included summits with leaders of Belgium, the European Union, and Italy.

Yonhap reported that Lee is presumed to have sought the Holy See's support for his administration's efforts to build peace on the Korean Peninsula. During talks with the pope, Lee is believed to have requested the Vatican's support for his initiatives to ease tensions and promote peace on the peninsula while voicing his support for building peace and solidarity around the globe.

President Lee Jae Myung, followed by first lady Kim Hea Kyung, entered the Papal Palace for the meeting.

Later in the day, Lee was also scheduled to meet with Pietro Parolin, the Vatican's secretary of state. Yonhap published the report from Vatican on June 15, 2026.