President Andrzej Duda has extended his congratulations to Pope Leo XIV. In a letter addressed to the Holy Father, he expressed hope that the new papacy would contribute to ending the war in Ukraine. He also declared Poland’s willingness to deepen its cooperation with the Vatican.
W imieniu Narodu Polskiego i moim własnym pragnę wyrazić wielką radość z powodu wyniesienia Waszej Świątobliwości na Tron Piotrowy. Proszę Waszą Świątobliwość o przyjęcie najserdeczniejszych życzeń wszelkich łask Bożych potrzebnych do pełnienia misji Wikariusza Chrystusa –… pic.twitter.com/5shzKsKSdZ
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The inauguration of Pope Leo XIV’s pontificate will take place on Sunday in the Vatican. Around 250,000 people and 200 official delegations are expected to attend. The Mass in St. Peter’s Square will coincide with the 105th birthday of Pope John Paul II.
“Your Holiness – Holy Father,
On behalf of the Polish Nation and myself, I wish to express great joy at Your Holiness’s elevation to the See of Peter. I kindly ask Your Holiness to accept my heartfelt wishes for all of God’s graces necessary in fulfilling the mission of the Vicar of Christ – the Builder of Bridges,”
reads the letter published on the website of the Chancellery of the President of the Republic of Poland.
President Duda recalled that since the baptism of Poland’s first ruler, Mieszko I, in the year 966, the Christian vision of God, humanity, and the world has been “the foundation upon which our national identity, cultural heritage, and history are built.”
“The history of the Polish people is marked by labor, service, and a struggle—often paid with immense sacrifice—for freedom, peace, and a just order in Europe, understood as a community of nations whose unity and civilizational achievements stem from the Decalogue and the Gospel,”
he emphasized.
He noted that May 8—the day Cardinal Robert Prevost was elected pope—coincides in the Polish Catholic Church with the feast of Saint Stanislaus, the principal patron of Poland, and also marks the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II in Europe.
“Poland experienced this most dreadful conflict in history with particular pain, suffering the relatively highest losses—six million people killed and murdered, along with catastrophic material destruction. This trauma remains deeply etched in our national memory,”
he stressed.
“That is why the first words spoken by Your Holiness to the faithful gathered in St. Peter’s Square – ‘Peace be with you all’ – were received by us as a sign of Divine Providence and a message of hope for the swift end of the full-scale war unfolding just beyond Poland’s borders, in Ukraine, a country defending itself against brutal Russian aggression,”
the president said.
He expressed hope that Pope Leo XIV’s pontificate would help bring an end to the conflict:
“so that our part of Europe may once again enjoy peace, and that the vision outlined by our great compatriot, Saint John Paul II, may become reality – a world order grounded in the Decalogue, in freedom, the dignity of every human person, respect for all cultures and traditions, and the right of nations to self-determination.”
President Duda reaffirmed the Republic of Poland’s readiness to “further strengthen the special ties that unite it with the Holy See – in the name of shared values that are especially dear to us, in the spirit of responsibility for the common good of the international community, and in support of global peace.”
“May God abundantly bless all the efforts of Your Holiness in service to the Church and the entire human family!”
he concluded.