US President Barack Obama urged Pope Benedict XVI on Friday to keep reminding all parties to Middle East peace efforts of their “responsibilities,” the White House said. During a rough 30-minute, one-on-one talk at the Vatican, Mr Obama underlined his commitment to ending the Arab-Israeli conflict and “expressed appreciation for the long standing efforts of the Holy See and the Pope himself in promoting that,” deputy US national security adviser Denis McDonough told reporters.
The US President told the pontiff that “all sides have responsibilities in this effort” and vowed to continue delivering that message, McDonough said aboard Obama’s official Air Force One airplane as he traveled to Ghana. Mr Obama also “expressed his hope that the holy father would continue to do that as well, including responsibilities that we believe are important, not just from Israelis but also from the neighbouring Arab states,” said Mr McDonough.
Mr Obama promised Pope Benedict XVI on Friday as they met for the first time that he would try to reduce the number of abortions in the United States, the Vatican said. The US President and the pontiff also discussed Middle-East peace, Mr Obama’s efforts to reach out to the Muslim world, immigration reforms and sensitive bioethics matters in talks that lasted about 40 minutes, both sides said.