- Title: BELGIUM: EU leaders welcome new Pope
- Date: 14th March 2013
- Summary: BRUSSELS, BELGIUM (MARCH 14, 2013) (REUTERS) EXTERIOR OF BUILDING WHERE MEMBERS OF EUROPEAN PEOPLE'S PARTY (EPP) MEETING WAS HELD GATE SPANISH PRIME MINISTER MARIANO RAJOY ARRIVING MICROPHONES (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) SPANISH PRIME MINISTER MARIANO RAJOY, SAYING: "First of all, let me start by expressing my satisfaction at the election of the new Pope. It is a great joy for Spain, it is a Latin American pope, he did part of his studies in Spain, he knows our country very well and therefore we can all be very satisfied and happy. I will travel to Rome next Tuesday together with the Crown Prince and his wife on March 19. Once again, this is a big reason for all of us to be happy." RAJOY WALKING TOWARDS BUILDING (SOUNDBITE) (English) FINNISH PRIME MINISTER JYRKI KATAINEN SAYING: "He is responsible for so many things, and even though Finland is not a Catholic country, but of course we are part of Europe and the Church has a big role in Europe." GERMAN CHANCELLOR ANGELA MERKEL ARRIVING MERKEL WALKING TOWARDS BUILDING
- Embargoed: 29th March 2013 12:00
- Keywords:
- Location: Belgium
- City:
- Country: Belgium
- Topics: General
- Reuters ID: LVA3NPWA3AP7KPEA8S905PUXIDFP
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- Story Text: EU leaders welcomed the election of the new Pope as they arrived for a summit in Brussels on Thursday (March 14), with high hopes expressed for a man seen as a champion of the poor.
"I'm very convinced that this will be a strong signal for the Church, but also maybe for values in an era that has so much need to refocus attention on issues of poverty, on the distribution of wealth in the world, and within particular countries. I have great expectations," Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti told reporters.
Spain's Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy rejoiced in the fact that Pope Francis is from Latin America.
"It is a great joy for Spain, it is a Latin American pope, he did part of his studies in Spain, he knows our country very well and therefore we can all be very satisfied and happy," Rajoy said, adding that he will be travelling to Rome next week.
Prime Minster of non-Catholic Finland, Jyrki Katainen, also highlighted the importance of the role the Pope is set ot play.
"He is responsible for so many things, and even though Finland is not a Catholic country, but of course we are part of Europe and the Church has a big role in Europe," Katainen said.
Commentators said Francis had a reputation for being as conservative as his predecessor, Pope Benedict XVI, but Latin American Catholics celebrated the fact that the cardinals had, in his words, gone "to the end of the world" to find him. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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