By Kim Yoo-chul
ROME ― President Moon Jae-in will visit the Vatican today for a meeting with Pope Francis where he is expected to deliver an invitation from North Korean leader Kim Jong-un to visit Pyongyang, Cheong Wa Dae said.
"As planned, Pope Francis will receive President Moon at the Vatican, Thursday. A closed face-to-face meeting is also planned. During the meeting, Moon plans to persuade Pope Francis to visit North Korea," the presidential office said.
President Moon, a Catholic, arrived in Rome early Wednesday as part of his nine-day European trip to attend the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) to be held in Brussels, Belgium, later this week. This is the third time for Moon to meet with the Pope.
On Wednesday afternoon, Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin presided over a "Mass for Peace" on the Korean Peninsula in Rome's St. Peter's Basilica, in which President Moon participated.
At the event, the secretary hoped for permanent peace on the peninsula and for faster reconciliation urging the two Koreas to reject a "mindset of suspicion and confrontation" and explore new paths to build peace.
Pope Francis has been following developments on the peninsula. He visited South Korea in August.