A Holy See Press Office statement says a meeting of the Viet Nam – Holy See Joint Working Group in the Vatican to promote bilateral relations took place on Friday in an atmosphere of friendship, trust and mutual respect.
The XII meeting of the Viet Nam – Holy See Joint Working Group took place in Vatican City on 12 September 2025. The Meeting was co-chaired by H.E. Madam Le Thi Thu Hang, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Head of the Vietnamese delegation, and Monsignor Mirosław Wachowski, Under-Secretary for Relations with States, Head of the Holy See delegation.
The two sides held an extensive exchange of views on the Viet Nam – Holy See relations and the current situation of the Catholic Church in Viet Nam. Both sides acknowledged the positive contributions of the Church to the overall development of Viet Nam, in the spirit of living out the Gospel in the world by being good Catholics and good citizens.
Both sides expressed satisfaction with the progress in their bilateral relations since the XI Meeting of the Viet Nam – Holy See Joint Working Group, which took place in Ha Noi in May 2024, including through regular engagement and consultations, exchanges of delegations at various levels, especially at the high level, as well as the activities of the Resident Papal Representative in Ha Noi, H.E. Archbishop Marek Zalewski.
The two sides underlined the importance of further promoting their bilateral relations through high-level exchanges, and agreed to continue holding regular Meetings of the Joint Working Group.
The Meeting took place in an atmosphere of friendship, trust and mutual respect.
On the occasion of the visit to the Vatican, the Vietnamese delegation was received by His Holiness Pope Leo XIV, and paid courtesy calls to the Secretary of State, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, and to the Secretary for Relations with States and International Organizations, Archbishop Paul Gallagher.