MOSCOW, April 21. /TASS/. Late Pope Francis expressed a highly positive attitude toward Russia, and the country will remember it always, President Vladimir Putin said on Monday.
"He was a man who expressed a highly positive attitude towards Russia," Putin said. "I can say this with confidence, as I had personal audiences with him on multiple occasions, and we also communicated through various channels."
"He was a man who — and I want to emphasize this — had expressed a highly positive attitude toward Russia. We will remember that," Putin added.
The Holy See announced earlier in the day that Pope Francis had died at the age of 88. On March 23, Francis was discharged from the hospital, where he had spent nearly 40 days. He had been treated for a complicated form of pneumonia and, as his doctors later reported, came close to death twice. The pontiff was ordered to have two months of complete rest, but he began briefly leaving his residence in the former Vatican hotel of St. Martha’s to visit St. Peter’s Basilica.
On April 20, the head of the Roman Catholic Church drove Francis in the popemobile through a square full of worshippers who had come out to celebrate Easter.
Argentine Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio (Pope Francis) was elected in 2013 after the abdication of his predecessor Benedict XVI, who served as pope emeritus in repose, the first in 600 years, for nearly a decade until his death in late 2022.