Peru’s president announces that Pope Leo will visit in early November

LIMA, Peru (AP) — Peruvian President José María Balcázar announced Thursday that Pope Leo XIV will visit Peru in the first half of November.

Balcázar said after meeting with the pontiff at the Vatican that Leo will travel to Puno, Iquitos, Cusco, Pucallpa, Piura and Chiclayo, where the Pope carried out his pastoral work for nearly a decade. The Chicago-born pope previously lived in Trujillo, on the northwestern coast, and became a Peruvian citizen in 2015.

The president told local radio station RPP that details of the itinerary will be released later due to “religious policy and security reasons.”

The Vatican has not confirmed any upcoming trip, but a visit to Peru with possible stops in other South American countries is widely rumored. Leo himself has expressed his desire to make such a trip.

“Argentina and Uruguay are awaiting the Pope’s visit. I believe Peru would also welcome me with open arms, and if I go to Peru, I would also visit many neighboring countries, but the plan is not yet finalized,” the pontiff told the press in December upon his return from Lebanon.

Chiclayo, 14 kilometers (9 miles) from the Pacific Ocean, is a city with more than 800,000 inhabitants and plays a vital role as a commercial hub on Peru’s northern coast. However, it also faces social problems, and around 20% of its population lives in poverty.

Leo lived there for almost a decade before he left for Rome in 2023 when then-Pope Francis asked him to assume the presidency of the Pontifical Commission for Latin America.

The residents of Chiclayo celebrated with excitement when, in his first words as pontiff, Leo XIV addressed the cheering crowds in St. Peter’s Square in Spanish: “My beloved diocese of Chiclayo, in Peru, where a faithful people have accompanied their bishop and shared their faith.”

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AP journalist Nicole Winfield contributed to this report from the Vatican.