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President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama meet with Pope Benedict XVI, Friday, July 10, 2009, at the Vatican. (AP Photo/Haraz N. Ghanbari) |
Pope Benedict Receives US President Barack Obama
VATICAN CITY- President Barack Obama sat down with Pope Benedict XVI at the Vatican on Friday for a meeting in which frank but constructive talks were expected between two men who agree on helping the poor but disagree on abortion and stem cell research.
"It's a great honor," Obama said as he greeted the pope, thanking him for the meeting. They sat down at the pontiff's desk and exchanged pleasantries before reporters and photographers were ushered out of the ornate room.
The pope was heard asking about the Group of Eight summit, the meeting of developed nations that concluded before Obama's arrival at Vatican City. Obama said it "was very productive."
With some Catholic activists and American bishops outspoken in their criticism of Obama, even as polls have shown he received a majority of Catholic votes, the audience was much awaited.
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Obama lands in Ghana on historic Africa trip
Obama lands in Ghana on historic Africa trip
President Barack Obama walks with Ghana President John Atta Mills, right, at the Presidential Palace in Accra, Ghana, Saturday, July 11, 2009. In his first visit to sub-Saharan Africa since taking office, President Barack Obama is seeking to lift up the continent of his ancestors — while keeping its emotions in check.
Barack Obama receives hero's welcome in Africa
ACCRA, Ghana – In his first visit to sub-Saharan Africa since taking office, President Barack Obama is seeking to lift up the continent of his ancestors — while keeping its emotions in check.
Greeted by a rush of excitement on his arrival here, the United States' first black president planned a speech to Ghana's Parliament on Saturday outlining his hope for a future Africa prospering in democracy. He was also visiting a hospital and a one-time slave trading post, joined by his wife, Michelle, a great-great granddaughter of slaves.
But his speech was also pitched as a sobering account of Africa's enduring afflictions: hunger, disease, corruption, ethnic strife and strongman rule.
And during his 21-hour sojourn, no big public event was planned — in part for fear it could cause a celebratory stampede, as a 1998 stop byPresident Bill Clinton almost did.
People lined the streets Saturday morning, many waving at every vehicle of Obama's stretching motorcade at it headed toward a meeting at Osu Castle, the storied coastline presidential state house. One woman emerged from a coffee shop to wave a tiny U.S. flag. Many billboards lined the roads, including one that showed the president and his wife with the greeting, "Ghana loves you."
While the people of Ghana may be in a frenzy over Obama's visit, the president started his day with typical calm. Wearing a gray T-shirt and gym pants, he walked through the lobby of his hotel virtually unnoticed at 7:30 a.m. local time on his way to the downstairs gym for a morning workout.
A short time later, his motorcade left the hotel, passed under hovering military helicopters and arrived for a delayed welcome ceremony.President John Atta Mills greeted his counterpart and then the pair went inside for one-on-one meetings.
Selecting Ghana as the starting point of his black Africa travels, the president sought to highlight a continental success story.
"You've got ... a functioning democracy, a president who's serious about reducing corruption, and you've seen significant economic growth," he told a news conference in Italy on Friday.
Obama was to hold talks with Mills, who took over from longtime leader John Kufuor in January — a peaceful democratic handoff all too rare for the continent.
Obama flew to West Africa after the G-8 summit in L'Aquila, Italy, approved a new $20 billion food security plan. It aims to help poor nations in Africa and elsewhere avert mass starvation during the global recession.
2009 obama landed saharan africa
U.S. President Barak Obama and other Group of Eight leaders are expected to announce a $15 billion pledge over three years to help poor countries fight hunger and develop their own agricultural sectors.
Mr. Obama also held separate talks with South African officials.
The U.S. leader next meets with Pope Benedict in Vatican City Friday.
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US President Barack Obama, right,and Libyan leader and head of the African Union Moammar Gadhafi pictured during the G8/G5 summit in L'Aquila, Italy Thursday July 9, 2009. (AP Photo/ Michael Gottschalk/Pool)
Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, second right, stands with leaders from left to right, Egypt's President Hosni Mubarak, Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula Da Silva, Nigeria's President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua, South Africa's President Jacob Zuma, and United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon during a dinner at the G8 summit in L'Aquila, Italy on Thursday, July 9, 2009. (AP Photo/Michael Gottschalk, Pool)
