Azerbaijan’s top Muslim leader announces plans to meet Pope Leo XIV during Vatican visit

The Chairman of the Caucasus Muslims Office (CMO), Sheikh-ul-Islam Allahshukur Pashazade, has announced plans to meet with the newly elected Pope Leo XIV, as part of an upcoming visit by the Muslim Council of Elders to the Vatican.

“A visit by the Muslim Council of Elders to the Vatican will take place in the near future, during which a meeting with Leo XIV will be held,” Pashazade told journalists after the Eid prayer at the Taza Pir Mosque in Baku on June 6, Caliber.Az reports via local media.

He also expressed optimism about a potential papal visit to Azerbaijan, stating, “We hope for a visit by the Pope to Azerbaijan in the near future.”

Pashazade highlighted Azerbaijan’s reputation as a model for religious harmony, especially at a time when many other parts of the world are experiencing internal divisions within the Muslim community. 

“While conflicts between Muslims continue in many parts of the world, there are no such issues in Azerbaijan — not even between representatives of different religions and denominations,” he said.

He referred to a recent conference held by the Muslim Council of Elders, which addressed the need for better intra-Islamic relations. According to Pashazade, “At the conference organized by the Muslim Council of Elders, a decision was made to properly structure intra-Islamic relations. Council members also emphasized that Azerbaijan should serve as an example in this matter. A written declaration was adopted, which we will publish soon.”

Further solidifying Azerbaijan's role in promoting religious coexistence, Pashazade announced that the next session of the Muslim Council of Elders will be held in Azerbaijan. He credited this development to national leadership, saying, “Thanks to the policies pursued by our head of state, Ilham Aliyev, there are no interreligious conflicts in Azerbaijan.”

Pashazade also addressed the recent decision to revive the Iravan Eldership, a religious and cultural institution that historically represented Azerbaijanis in Iravan (present-day Yerevan). The decision to resume its activities was taken on May 22 during a meeting of the CMO’s Council of Elders.

Commenting on the move, Pashazade said, “This is not a new institution. It is a restoration of what already existed. These are our ancestral lands. In 1988, the activities of the Eldership were suspended due to the deportation of Azerbaijanis from Iravan. We hope to return to our lands, and that the Iravan Eldership will once again operate there.” He added that Azerbaijan is not concerned with Armenia’s position on the matter: “The position of Armenia regarding the revival of the Iravan Eldership is of no interest to us.”

When asked about the possibility of a meeting with the Catholicos of All Armenians, Garegin II, Pashazade responded firmly, stating that such an encounter is currently not on his agenda. “I do not want to meet with Garegin II at this time. I consider it beneath my dignity,” he said.

Explaining his position further, he criticised what he sees as the Catholicos’s involvement in political matters. “The Catholicos has taken on a political mantle in addition to his religious role. A spiritual leader should not immerse himself so deeply in politics. That is why I have no plans to meet with him,” Pashazade said.

By Tamilla Hasanova