Above: Haiti President Michel Martelly and Pope Benedict XVI

By the Caribbean Journal staff

Haiti President Michel Martelly continued his trip across Western Europe Thursday with a visit to Vatican City and a meeting with Pope Benedict XVI.

Martelly was subsequently received by Cardinal Secretary of State Tarcisio Bertone SDB, who as joined by Archbishop Dominique Mamberti, Secretary for Relations with States.

The discussions, which the Vatican called “cordial” in a release, focused on the “good relations that exist between the Holy See and Haiti.”

They also involved the contributions offered by the Catholic church in Haiti, particularly following the earthquake in 2010.

The two sides additionally discussed the importance of “continuing collaboration for the harmonious development of Haitian society,” according to the Vatican.

While in Rome, Martelly also held a working meeting with Jose Graziano da Silva, the director general of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization.