Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev has formally invited Pope Leo XIV to visit Azerbaijan. Radio Liberty's "Azatutyun" service reports that the announcement came from the official website of the Azerbaijani presidency.

According to the statement, during a meeting in Baku with George Jacob Koovakad, head of the Holy See's Dicastery for Interreligious Dialogue, Aliyev handed him a letter inviting the Pope of Rome to visit Azerbaijan.

At the July 16 meeting, Aliyev and the Vatican delegation also discussed building a second Catholic church on Azerbaijani territory, along with future cooperation between the Heydar Aliyev Foundation and the Vatican.