(Crux) After much rumor and speculation, the Vatican confirmed on Saturday that Pope Francis will visit Armenia this June. A trip to the Caucasus, to visit Georgia and Azerbaijan, is also in his schedule for autumn.
The Armenia outing is set for June 24-26, while the stops in Georgia and Azerbaijan will come Sept. 30 – Oct. 2.
Francis had expressed his desire to visit Armenia last November, during an airborne press conference coming back from his Africa tour. However, on previous opportunities the pope had also spoken of possible trips to Peru and his home country Argentina for 2016, neither of which appears likely to happen.
The Armenia foray is bound to cause diplomatic tensions with Turkey, if recent experience is to be taken into consideration.
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