Pope Leo arrived in Turkey on Thursday for his first journey outside Italy since becoming head of the Catholic Church, launching a three-day visit focused on appeals for peace in the Middle East and efforts to strengthen ties between Christian traditions long divided by history.
The American-born pontiff selected Turkey as his first overseas destination to mark the 1700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea, an early gathering of church leaders that produced the Nicene Creed, a declaration of faith still recited by most Christian communities worldwide.
Leo landed in Ankara shortly after midday, stepping off the plane beneath Turkish and Vatican flags and greeting a delegation led by Turkey’s culture and tourism minister. His itinerary includes political meetings, visits to sensitive cultural and religious sites and speeches that are expected to reveal more of his approach to international affairs.
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Speaking to journalists during the flight from Rome, Leo said he intended to use the trip to encourage coexistence at a moment of mounting global tension.
“We hope to announce and proclaim how important peace is throughout the world,” he told reporters, adding that he wished to “invite all people to come together to search for greater unity and greater harmony.”
Scholars who study the papacy say this first tour abroad will be an important moment. Massimo Faggioli, an Italian academic, told Reuters that the visit offers “the first big chance” to understand Leo’s geopolitical views.
The pope, 70, was scheduled to meet President Tayyip Erdogan and address Turkish political leaders before flying to Istanbul later in the day.
In Istanbul, Leo will be hosted by Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, spiritual leader of the world’s 260 million Orthodox Christians. Relations between the Catholic and Orthodox churches have warmed in recent decades after centuries of separation dating back to the East-West Schism of 1054.
On Friday, Leo and Bartholomew will travel together to the town of Iznik, once known as Nicaea, where early church leaders drafted the creed that remains a foundation of Christian belief.
In an unusual choice for a foreign visit, Leo is expected to deliver his public remarks in English rather than Italian. During the flight, two journalists surprised the pope with pumpkin pies in honor of the U.S. Thanksgiving holiday, which coincided with his arrival in Turkey.
Leo’s mission will continue Sunday when he travels to Lebanon, a country deeply affected by the spillover from the Gaza conflict. Lebanon has the highest share of Christians in the Middle East and has been shaken by exchanges of fire between Israel and Hezbollah, including an Israeli strike last weekend that killed a top Hezbollah commander in Beirut.
Vatican spokesperson Matteo Bruni said on Monday that security precautions were in place for the trip, though he declined to offer details.
Lebanese leaders hope the pope’s visit will draw international focus to a country hosting around one million Syrian and Palestinian refugees and still wrestling with a prolonged economic collapse. Many fear Israel may escalate military operations in the coming months.