VATICAN CITY, NOV 21, 1996 (VIS) - Holy See Press Office Director Joaquin Navarro-Valls stated today: "This morning Archbishop Jean-Louis Tauran, secretary for Relations with States, left for an official visit of several days in the State of Kuwait, having accepted an invitation by that country's Foreign Affairs Minister Sheikh Sabah Al Hamed Al Jaber Al Sabah.
"It is the first visit of this type to that country, with which the Holy See has had diplomatic relations since 1969, though it does not have a resident apostolic nuncio there.
"Archbishop Tauran will dedicate a day to celebrations and meetings with the Catholic community, which numbers about 100,000 faithful, in the majority foreign workers, and which is assisted by the Vicar General, Bishop Francis Micallef, who is helped by seven priests.
"The secretary for Relations with States is scheduled to be received by Emir Sheikh Jaber Al Ahmed Al Sabah, to whom he will give a message hand-written by the Holy Father. He will meet ministers and other high Kuwait officials with whom he will have occasion to speak of the situation of the local Church, of diverse regional problems, such as the peace process, of respect for basic rights, and the freedom of religion and conscience.
"Archbishop Tauran will be accompanied by nunciature councillor Msgr. Luigi
Gatti. In Kuwait, he will be joined by Apostolic Nuncio Archbishop Pablo Puente
and by Msgr. Dominique Mamberti, nunciature councillor, from Lebanon. Bishops
Francis Micallef and Bernardo Gremoli, apostolic vicars in, respectively,
Kuwait and Arabia will also form part of the delegation."
OP/VISIT KUWAIT/NAVARRO-VALLS:TAURAN VIS 961121 (260)