Argentina’s President Javier Milei said on Tuesday that it is “highly likely” that Pope Leo XIV will visit the country in November.
“It is highly likely, barring some misfortune,” Milei said in an interview with Radio Mitre, highlighting "Foreign Minister Pablo Quirno’s work" in helping to "finalise positions.”
He continued: “It is very likely that we will have the blessing of welcoming him here in Argentina in November.”
The Vatican’s official website has not yet included any trip to the Americas on its formal agenda for 2026, as the only visits confirmed so far are to countries in Europe and Africa.
However, the Uruguayan Episcopal Conference said on Thursday that “there is a strong possibility that the Holy Father will visit Uruguay" before the end of the year.
The Peruvian Episcopal Conference recently stated that a visit to Peru by the pontiff was “80 percent certain."
Pope Leo, a US citizen, spent many years as a missionary in Peru before becoming Bishop of Chiclayo, where he later obtained citizenship.
The Argentine Synod remained cautious regarding President Milei's statements.
“There is a very real possibility that he will come, but we must be prudent and wait for confirmation from the Holy See,” said Jorge García Cuerva, the archbishop of Buenos Aires, on Tuesday.
Argentina had long awaited a visit from Leo XIV’s predecessor, Pope Francis, the former Archbishop of Buenos Aires who became leader of the Catholic Church in 2013. However, the Argentine pontiff died in 2025 without ever returning to his homeland.
– TIMES/AFP
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