The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Peru, Carlos Pareja, announced this Tuesday that Pope Leo XIV is considering traveling to Peru and two other countries on the American continent "before the end of the year," placing the trip around the month of November.
"The date the Pope will visit Peru is not precisely known, but it is assumed to be before the end of the year, probably November. Furthermore, he will not only visit Peru, but will also go to two other countries in the region, that is what we have been informed. I don't know what the other two countries are, but they are three from the region," he explained in statements to the Peruvian radio station RPP.
The head of Peruvian diplomacy detailed that the Government does not yet have a specific date for the pontiff's arrival, although he is confident that he will remain on Peruvian territory "for at least three days, because he wants to visit three cities: Chiclayo, Lima, and perhaps a city in the Amazon," also recalling that Leo XIV maintains a strong bond with Chiclayo, the city where he served as bishop.
Pareja added that the President of the Republic, José María Balcázar, has a meeting scheduled with Leo XIV in the Vatican on June 18. In this regard, he specified that the invitation extended by the Holy See was initially sent to José Jerí, before he left the Head of State position after a successful no-confidence motion in mid-February.
"There is a date and time for President Balcázar to be in the Vatican, which is June 18, but we have not yet made the request to Congress, because we are in the process of the elections on Sunday," he indicated, referring to the second round of the presidential elections in which Keiko Fujimori and Roberto Sánchez will compete.
"The objective of the trip is to formally, officially invite the Pope. The Pope has expressed that yes, he will receive the president, and not only will he receive him, but he has extended an invitation for him to go," he stated, thus underlining the reciprocal nature of the visit and the good rapport between the Vatican and the Peruvian Executive.