(150711) -- HAVANA, July 11, 2015 (Xinhua) -- Image taken on July 9, 2015 shows Cuban former leader Fidel Castro delivering a speech during a meeting with officers and civil servants of the Interior Ministry and the Cuban Revolutionary Armed Forces involved in the production of food, in Havana, Cuba. Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro has handed awards to a group of workers for their outstanding work in food production, the official Granma daily reported Saturday. (Xinhua/Estudios Revolucion/Prensa Latina) (jg)
Havana, Feb 15 (IANS/AKI) The historic meeting between Pope Francis and Patriarch Kirill, the head of the Russian Orthodox Church, has brought hope to all the people of the world, Cuban leader Fidel Castro said on Monday.
The two religious leaders' meeting in the Cuban capital on February 12 was of "extraordinary importance", Castro wrote in the country's official media.
"The fight for peace in the world is the most sacred duty of all human beings, whatever their religion, homeland, the colour of their skin or their age," Castro wrote in state-run Cubadebate.
Pope Francis and Patriarch Kirill embraced when they met and issued a joint declaration pleading for world leaders to protect persecuted Christians and calling their meeting an "indispensable" example of civility for the world hit by violence, poverty and sectarian strife.
The meeting, the first between the heads of the Catholic and Russian Orthodox churches, also carried political overtones, coming at a time of Russian disagreements with the West over Syria and Ukraine.
