THE VATICAN, August 27. /TASS/. Vatican Secretary for Relations with States and International Organizations Paul Richard Gallagher and Russian Presidential Aide Yury Ushakov held a meeting on Thursday where they discussed international issues, the Holy See’s Secretariat of State said.

"Today, Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher has met with Yury Ushakov, the Russian president’s aide for international affairs. The discussion touched upon topical international issues," the Secretariat said in a post on X.

The pre-arranged meeting was a one-on-one event, a source told TASS.

Earlier, the high-ranking official of the Roman Catholic Church held talks with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. Against the background of the fundamental changes in the geopolitical situation currently taking place, relations between Russia and the Vatican remain trustworthy, friendly and pragmatic, the Russian side noted.

Gallagher arrived on a five-day working visit to Russia on Monday. He will meet with local Catholic clerics and church-goers on the final day of his visit tomorrow. On Wednesday, the archbishop visited Moscow's famous Cathedral of Christ the Savior. Also, he met with Metropolitan Anthony of Volokolamsk, who heads the Moscow Patriarchate’s Department for External Church Relations. "Topics of mutual interest were discussed at the meeting," the Vatican’s Secretariat said.