November 6, 2009. The pope welcomed Kazakh president Nursultan Nazarbayev to the Vatican.


During the meeting, the president and the pope touched on issues like inter-religious dialogue, the promotion of peace and the economic crisis.

Both leaders also talked about Kazakhstan’s chairmanship of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, or OSCE, which is set to take place in 2010.

In highlighting Kazakhstan’s current affairs, they also spoke about the peaceful relations that exist among members of different religions in the country.

In the exchange of official gifts, President Nazarbayev gave the pope a replica of the Palace of Peace and Reconciliation, a modern pyramid in Astana, the capitol of Kazakhstan.

In return the pope gave him medals from his pontificate.

There are some 15 million people in Kazakhstan of which 250,000 are Catholic. John Paul II was the first pope to visit the country in 2001.

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