Pope Francis is touring to Mongolia on the finish of the summer time, a go to that can be a primary for a pontiff and one wealthy in geopolitical significance given its proximity to Russia and China.

The Vatican on Saturday confirmed the Aug. 31-Sept. 4 journey to the landlocked U.S-allied nation sandwiched between Russia and China, two international locations popes have by no means visited.

The go to comes as Francis is making an attempt to toe a diplomatic line in his relations with each international locations: With Moscow, Francis is looking for a gap for a peace envoy to nudge Russia and Ukraine to negotiations to finish the conflict. With China, the Vatican has seen its landmark 2018 accord over bishop nominations violated, with Beijing making unilateral choices.

Francis can be ministering to a tiny Christian group in Mongolia, a part of his concentrate on visiting far-flung Catholics on the peripheries of the church’s predominant facilities of affect. According to statistics by the Catholic nonprofit Aid to the Church in Need, Mongolia is 53% Tantric Buddhist, 39% atheist, 3% Muslim, 3% Shaman and a pair of% Christian.

Mongolia has strived to keep up its political and financial independence from each its Soviet-era patron Moscow - which provides nearly all of its vitality wants - and rising regional energy China, which buys greater than 90% of its mining exports, primarily coal and copper.

At the identical time, many individuals in Mongolia consult with the United States as their nation’s “third neighbor” in recognition of the various different exchanges between the 2 that assist counter each Russian and Chinese affect.

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