The reception precedes an audience scheduled to take place between Rama and Pope Leo XIV at the Papal Library of the Apostolic Palace.

Accompanied by his wife Linda Rama, their son Zaho and an official delegation, Rama began his official visit to the Vatican on Tuesday at the invitation of the Holy See.

Earlier, Rama visited the Shrine of Genazzano, home to the image of Our Lady of Good Counsel, believed to rest on a fragment detached from the wall of the Church of Shkodra in 1467.

The Prime Minister’s programme also includes visits to St Peter’s Basilica, the Stanza delle Lacrime, the Pauline Chapel, the Sala Regia, the Sistine Chapel and the altar of St John Paul II.

At the conclusion of the visit, Rama and his wife are due to visit the tomb of Pope Francis at the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore.

The visit will also include additional meetings and talks with Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican’s Secretary of State.

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