Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said he had a “warm discussion” with Pope Leo XIV when the pair met for the first time in Vatican City.
The two men came face-to-face after the Pope’s inauguration mass in St Peter’s Square on Sunday, local time, which the Prime Minister had been invited to.
Mr Albanese said he told the Pope it was “a great honour” to be at the inauguration and also mentioned how proud his late mum Maryanne would have been of his attendance.
The Prime Minister, a Catholic, said the new Pope also spoke fondly of Australia during the meeting.
“It was a very warm discussion. I was introduced to him as the Australian Prime Minister. He expressed a warmth about Australia,” he said.
“I spoke to him about my mother, (who) is I’m sure looking down from heaven with the biggest smile she’s ever had. The fact that her son was at the Inaugural Mass of a Pope in the Vatican, was quite extraordinary.
“So, for me it was a very personal moment as well, and it was a personal discussion. It was very warm. He expressed his affection for Australia and I told him that Australia’s five million Catholics would be watching and wishing him well in his pontificate.”
Mr Albanese also met with a number of world leaders prior to the inauguration, including Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz.
He later held talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen.
The Prime Minister also said he earlier met with his half-brother Ruggiero Albanese, who lives in Barletta in south-eastern Italy, along with his family.
He said it was “very nice to spend a short period of time, relative, with them” after they travelled to Rome.
“My brother and his wife and one of his daughters came and it was wonderful to be able to catch up with them,” Mr Albanese said.
“It was a really nice moment for them. I hadn’t seen them since my election as Prime Minister.”
