Biden meets with Pope and Macron ahead of G20 summit

Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg is expected to join protesters who have gathered in London and across the world on Friday, demanding that big finance defunds fossil fuel investments.

Pressure groups are demonstrating at over 50 locations across Europe, North America, Africa and Australia ahead of COP26, which begins in Glasgow this weekend.

The demonstrations aim to highlight the role that big finance is playing in exacerbating the climate crisis.

Organizers argue that banks have poured $3.8 trillion into fossil fuel extraction since the 2015 Paris agreement, despite net zero targets.

Giant murals will be painted in global financial centers using ash from houses that have been destroyed in wildfires, they said.

Joseph Sikulu, from the Pacific Climate Warriors group, a youth-led grassroots network working with communities to fight climate change from the Pacific Islands, said that “financial institutions that continue to invest in dirty fossil fuel projects are also investing in the destruction of our islands and our homes."

"It’s time for the corporations who have caused this crisis to be held accountable," he said, adding:

In the City of London, activists will take part in climate memorials outside major banks and insurers with a candle-lit vigil taking place at the Bank of England in the City o at 5:30 p.m. ET local time (12:30 p.m ET)

Activist Mitzi Jonelle Tan, who traveled thousands of miles to demonstrate in London on Friday, said that the issue is personal.

Tan added that climate change has already taken the lives of millions of people around the world and that extreme weather has been linked to nearly 10% of global deaths -- resulting in around five million annual deaths.

“The global day of action will be a moment to honor their memories and ensure that they did not die in vain," Tan said.

Pope Francis departed after his private audience with President Biden and the expanded meeting with the US delegation at the Vatican.

His meeting with Biden lasted 90 minutes, after which he and 10 Papal Gentlemen met with a larger US delegation, including the President, first lady Jill Biden, Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, and others, according to the White House.

President Biden and Pope Francis’s meeting ended at 1:30 p.m. local time (7:30 a.m. ET). The meeting lasted 90 minutes, the White House said.

An expanded meeting with a US delegation is now taking place at the Vatican.

The Pope and "10 Papal Gentlemen" are now meeting with the President, first lady Jill Biden, Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, national security adviser Jake Sullivan, assistant to the President and deputy chief of staff Jennifer O’Malley Dillon, assistant to the President and senior adviser to the President Mike Donilon and several others, according to the White House.

One notable attendee is Dr. Kevin O’Connor, who is Biden’s physician. The presidential physician typically travels with the President overseas but don't normally attend meetings.

When former President Trump met with Pope Francis in 2017, then-White House press secretary Sean Spicer, who is Catholic, was noticeably absent from the meeting. CNN reported at the time that Spicer assumed he would be on the list but found out last minute he would be excluded, and the presidential snub raised questions about Spicer's standing as the President's chief spokesperson.

White House press secretary Jen Psaki is not traveling with the President for at least the first few days of the trip because of a family emergency, the White House said Thursday.

Here is the full list from the White House of who is attending the expanded meeting at the Vatican:

The US officials include:

Holy See delegation includes:

Pope Francis isn’t traveling to the UK for the climate summit, but he’s meeting influential leaders who are.

Before the Pope met with Biden, he held a meeting with South Korean President Moon Jae-in on Friday morning.

Moon is also in Rome to attend the G20 summit over the weekend before COP26.

Moon and first lady Kim Jung-sook were expected to discuss a wide range of issues in their meeting with the Pope, the Yonhap News Agency reported, including peace efforts on the Korean Peninsula, how to end the Covid-19 pandemic, poverty and climate change. 

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is also in Rome for the G20 meet, is also scheduled to visit Vatican City and talk with Pope Francis this weekend ahead of the climate summit. This will be Modi’s first meeting with the Pope since taking office in 2014.

"I will also highlight the need to comprehensively address climate change issues including equitable distribution of carbon space, support for mitigation and adaptation and resilience building measures, mobilization of finance, technology transfer and importance of sustainable lifestyles for green and inclusive growth," a statement from Modi’s Prime Minister’s Office read.

But India’s stance on climate action has come under fire this week as the nation's environment secretary rejected a net zero emissions target, calling the country a "victim" of global warming and "not a contributor."

On Wednesday, India rejected calls to announce a net zero carbon emissions target, saying historical blame for the climate crisis lay with developed nations.

India is the world's third-biggest emitter of greenhouse gases after China and the United States and is under pressure to announce plans to become carbon neutral by mid-century or thereabouts at COP26.

President Biden's meeting with Pope Francis is extremely personal to him.

"He's one of our most religious presidents openly that we have had in some time," CNN White House correspondent Kaitlan Collins says. "Every Saturday, nearly, he is going to mass at 5:30 p.m. in Georgetown. He talks about his religion in his presidential speeches a lot."

Biden has also quoted the Pope in his messages throughout the world several times, Collins added.

"This is a President who brought his rosary beads into the situation room during the bin Laden raid when President Obama was in office. It's a deep aspect of his presidency. I don't think it's surprising that he is starting his second major trip overseas with this visit," she said.

There is a stark contrast between the Pope's relationship with former President Trump and President Biden.

"Often, you saw Pope Francis try to serve as a moral counterpart when Trump was in office, talking about building walls and a lot of policies he had; such a different message that the Pope took throughout the world," Collins remarks.

On the other hand, Biden and the Pope's stances are interweaved on certain global issues, she added, such as on the topic of nationalism.

"It shows how symbolic this relationship is but also how often they agree on some of these policy matters as well."

This meeting will obviously also be a personal discussion between the two behind closed doors as well, she said.

The president's vehicle pulled to a stop in an interior courtyard of the Vatican at noon local time, and Biden and wife Jill stepped from their limo, which was bearing the flag of the Holy See.

They were greeted by Monsignor Leonardo Sapienza, head of Papal Household, and other Vatican officials.

As he went down a receiving line shaking hands, Biden repeatedly said it was "good to be back." He last visited the Vatican in 2016 for a medical conference.

At one point, he introduced himself saying "I'm Jill's husband." And he could be overheard saying "I would have been elected much earlier," though it wasn't clear to what he was referring.

This is the standard Vatican protocol, before heading into the Apostolic Palace.

Pope Francis does not live in the Apostolic Palace, but he greets heads of states there because that's where the papal library is. That area is right on the square.

"When you see the Pope come for the Angelus on a Sunday to his window, those are the papal apartments. That's where President Biden will be going now," CNN reporter Delia Gallagher says.

The public's view of Friday's highly-anticipated meeting with President Biden and Pope Francis at the Vatican will be more limited than previously anticipated.

The visit has been clouded by severe restrictions on press coverage -- independent journalists will not be allowed to see the two men meeting at all, and no live pictures of the Pope greeting Biden will be transmitted.

Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni gave no explanation for the last-minute change.

Since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic, the Vatican has not admitted journalists to be present for the beginning of the Pope’s meetings with heads of state, a practice which has been common for years at the Vatican. Despite a formal letter of complaint from the Vatican press corps, the Vatican has yet to reinstate journalist pools at papal meetings. 

The Vatican has also canceled the planned live broadcast of the Pope’s meeting with South Korean President Moon Jae-in, due to take place just before the meeting with President Biden.

White House Correspondents Association President Steven Portnoy said in a statement that the association "joins Vatican reporters in expressing our disappointment that the world won’t see live pictures of President Biden’s meeting with Pope Francis."

"The White House told us the bilateral meeting would involve Biden and Francis discussing substantive matters of global significance 'including ending the COVID-19 pandemic, tackling the climate crisis, and caring for the poor.' Such an international news event demands independent coverage," Portnoy said.

President Biden has arrived at the Vatican for a highly symbolic meeting with Pope Francis. 

His motorcade arrived at St. Peter's Square just before noon local time (6 a.m. ET). 

Biden is the second Catholic US president, and his talks with Francis come with deep personal and political stakes.

The visit has been clouded by severe restrictions on press coverage. Independent journalists will not be allowed to see the two men meeting at all, and no live pictures of the Pope greeting Biden will be transmitted. 

President Biden is scheduled to meet the Pope in a matter of minutes. The highly-anticipated meeting at the Vatican will be limited to public view.

The Vatican said Thursday it had canceled a planned live broadcast of the meeting but will still distribute video of some parts of the arrival and greeting with the Pope following the meeting.

Stay with us for updates on their meeting.