Pope Leo XIV visited the Republic of San Marino and the eastern Italian city of Rimini on the 22nd, local time, to preach a message of peace.

According to the Vatican, the Pope stated at a Catholic cultural festival held in Rimini that day, "Let us expose the unjust structures of power that lie at the root of poverty, inequality, wars, and environmental disasters."

The Pope also emphasized, "Let us liberate labor from the idolatry of profit and disarm technological progress whenever it becomes destructive."

Pope Leo XIV said, "For Christians, there can be no enemies," adding, "Peace is made by those who love to meet others and are not afraid to build relationships."

In San Marino, the Pope met with local officials and expressed concern that "modern society is under serious threat from violence, social division, and ideologies that prioritize private interests over the common good."

He then emphasized that Christians must respond with forgiveness, solidarity, and attention to the vulnerable.

San Marino, a landlocked country inside Italian territory, is a very small nation with an area smaller than Ulleungdo and a population of around 34,000.

This papal visit to San Marino is the third, following those by Pope John Paul II in 1982 and Pope Benedict XVI in 2011.

Calling San Marino a "laboratory of good politics," Pope Leo XIV stressed, "Human dignity must be protected from conception to natural death."

San Marino legalized abortion within the first 12 weeks of pregnancy through a referendum in 2021.

(Photo: AP, Yonhap News)