The meeting between North Korea’s leader and Belarus’s Lukashenko marks a new course. The North Korean regime is managing its isolation as a strategic resource rather than simply enduring it. Pyongyang is choosing its interlocutors, building relationships, and using the diversification of its partners as a tool to maintain its autonomy from Beijing and Moscow with a growing focus on Southeast Asia at the expense of South Korea.

The President of the National Assembly in Hanoi presented the Pope with a letter from the President, who is now firmly at the helm of power in Vietnam. It was precisely internal disagreements over the local political balance of power that had slowed down the preparations for the visit, which is so eagerly awaited by the Catholic community. Cardinal Parolin is due to visit soon to establish full diplomatic relations. The possibility of 2027, when the Pope is already expected in Seoul for World Youth Day.

The funeral of the cardinal, who led the Church in Saigon from 1998 to 2014 and passed away on Sunday at the age of 93, took place today. Mons. Peter Van Kham, who served as his auxiliary bishop, recalls: "He always placed his trust in the Lord. And he knew how to involve everyone in the mission of making Christ’s love ever more widely known.”

A conference in Rome looked at the 1,001 messages the cardinal wrote while imprisoned in Vietnam. They were brought to his family, who had found refuge in Australia, hand-copied by people who later escaped by boat. Declared venerable by Francis in 2017, the cardinal was an extraordinary example of meekness and love for Christ. For Cardinal Tagle: "There was no trace of bitterness or hatred in him." His sister Élisabeth was present; she co-authored a new biography that was published recently.

The decade-long restoration of Notre Dame has been completed. The installation coincides with the feast of St. Joseph. For Bishop Zalewski, they are “a sign of faith placed in the heart of the city.” Last year, over 200 churches, ecclesiastical buildings, and other structures related to pastoral work were constructed nationwide.

This Sunday, 73.5 million voters will be called to pick 500 representatives out of 864 candidates rigorously selected by the Communist Party of Vietnam. The vote is another key step after the Congress to consolidate Tô Lâm's leadership.