American Cardinal Robert Prevost has been elected as the new 267th Pope of the Roman Catholic Church, Leo XIV. In a Friday press conference, the Foreign Ministry said that President Lai Ching-te (賴清德) immediately instructed the Vatican office to convey a congratulatory message to the new Pope. He emphasized that Taiwan looks forward to continuing cooperation to jointly pursue peace, justice, religious freedom, solidarity, and human dignity.

In his message, Lai expressed sincere congratulations to the new Pope on behalf of the Taiwanese government, people, and Taiwanese Catholic community. Lai said he is convinced the light of Pope Leo XIV's profound wisdom will continue to guide the Catholic Church and its 1.4 billion believers around the world.

The Foreign Ministry noted that this year marks the 83rd anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Taiwan and the Vatican, and that Taiwan will continue to promote exchanges and cooperation, further strengthen bilateral relations, and make more contributions to the world together with the Vatican.

In an interview, outgoing Vatican Ambassador Matthew Lee (李世明), retiring after nearly 10 years of service, recalled his past interactions with Prevost. He said that what impressed him most was Prevost’s knowledge of Taiwan and its clear distinction from China. Lee emphasized that the Holy See's consistent position on China is to promote religious freedom, having signed an agreement with China on the appointment of bishops in 2018. However, he added that no Chinese bishops attended Pope Francis’ funeral, which has raised doubts within the Catholic Church.

Lee also pointed out that the new ambassador to the Vatican, Anthony Chung-Yi Ho (賀忠義), is very familiar with American affairs. He said that with the new pope being from the U.S., he hopes Taiwan-Vatican relations will continue to develop in the future.