Pope Francis' decision to go to Cuba later this year is winning praise from a prominent world leader: President Obama.
The president "is pleased that His Holiness Pope Francis will visit #Cuba on his way to the US later this year," tweeted Ben Rhodes, deputy national security adviser for strategic communications.
Francis played a role in the new relationship between the United States and Cuba, once a Cold War foe. The Vatican hosted secret meetings last year between American and Cuban diplomats.
The Pope is planning to visit Cuba en route to the United States in September.
The Associated Press reported:
"He is scheduled to visit three U.S. cities starting around Sept. 23. He will address Congress and meet with President Barack Obama at the White House in Washington, address the United Nations in New York and attend a church rally for families in Philadelphia.
"Francis will become the third pope to visit Cuba. In 1998, St. John Paul II said during his visit that Cuba should 'open itself up to the world, and may the world open itself up to Cuba.'"
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