Pope Francis on Thursday received Lebanon's president Michel Aoun at the Vatican on his first official visit to Europe.
The meeting between Francis, Aoun, his wife and his entourage lasted around 20 minutes. Francis greeted Aoun in French before holding talks with him through an Arabic interpreter.
Aoun gifted Francis a 50 centimetre tall bronze statue of the infant Jesus wrapped in a red cape and white tunic with the cedar tree symbol of the Lebanese flag.
The pontiff gave Aoun a bronze olive branch symbolising peace.
The Vatican did not report the content of the meeting but Lebanese news outlet Naharnet said it had been expected to discuss the plight of Christians in the Middle East and "issues of concern for Lebanon and the Vatican" in the conflict-wracked region.
