Vice President Raquel Peña traveled to Rome, Italy to represent the Dominican people in the inaugural events of Pope Leo XIV on Sunday, 18 May 2025 in the Vatican See.
The Presidency reported that following her arrival at the Vatican, Peña expressed her hopes for the new pontificate on social media, stating: “May this new era bring more hope, unity, and peace to all humanity.”
Peña joined over 150 delegations and thousands of Catholic faithful at the ceremony in St. Peter’s Square that began Sunday, 18 May at 10am in Italy.
Notable attendees included Peruvian President Dina Boluarte, US Vice President James David Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and Italian head of state Sergio Mattarella.
Other Latin American leaders present were Colombian President Gustavo Petro, Paraguayan President Santiago Peña, Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa, Honduran President Xiomara Castro. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney also traveled to Rome to be present for the celebrations.
Additionally, presidents from Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelensky, Israel’s Isaac Herzog, Lebanon’s Joseph Aoun, and Poland’s Andrzej Duda were in attendance.
Representing royal houses were Spain’s King Felipe and Queen Letizia, Belgium’s King Philippe and Queen Matilde, and Prince Albert of Monaco.
After the mass, Vice President Peña and other dignitaries greeted Pope Leo XIV inside St. Peter’s Basilica during a ceremonial reception that lasted over an hour.
This marks the second time Peña has traveled to the Vatican as a representative of the Dominican Republic government. In June 2022, she held a private audience with then-Pope Francis, discussing environmental stewardship, conflict resolution, and praying for the health and well-being of the Dominican people.
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Listin Diario
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19 May 2025