U.S. diplomat: Pope's support boosts U.S. efforts for Mideast peace

Published: 2008-01-07

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Outgoing U.S. Ambassador to the Vatican Francis Rooney said Pope Benedict XVI's support of a Middle East peace conference boosts the United States' continued efforts to bring peace to the region. In a Jan. 7 speech to diplomats from around the world, the pope praised the recent U.S.-sponsored meeting in Annapolis, Md., for favoring "a global approach respectful of the rights and legitimate interests of all the peoples of the region" rather than focusing on unilateral interests. Rooney, who was one of more than 100 Vatican diplomats who attended the papal audience at the Vatican, said the papal message came just as U.S. President George W. Bush was set to leave for a weeklong trip in the Middle East to press for an Israeli-Palestinian peace deal. The ambassador told Catholic News Service Jan. 7 that the pope's support of this multilateral approach has given the Annapolis initiative "that tail wind needed to push it along."

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