VATICAN CITY: Pope Francis, 84, joked on Friday “I’m still alive” when asked by French President Emmanuel Macron how things were going at the start of hour-long private talks in the Vatican.

A video released by the Vatican of the two before and after the talks in the papal library showed the two to be very friendly, with both laughing.

When the president sat at the pope’s desk and asked how things were going, Francis answered in Italian “I’m still alive.” He shortly later said “perfect” but it was unclear whether he was referring to the same question.

Francis was hospitalised for 11 days in July during which he underwent surgery to remove part of his colon, which had narrowed. It was the first time he had been hospitalised since his election in 2013.

A Vatican statement did not disclose what the two had discussed privately but said Macron’s talks with top Vatican diplomats afterwards included climate change, Lebanon, the Middle East, Africa, and the forthcoming French Presidency of the European Union.

Shortly before the papal audience, Macron had told reporters he wanted to talk to Francis, among other things, about the equitable distribution of Covid-19 vaccines, the Lebanon crisis and migration.

Published in Dawn, November 27th, 2021