Vatican City, October 17, 2025 – The Europe Today: First Vice-President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Mehriban Aliyeva visited the Papal Basilica of Saint Paul Outside the Walls in Vatican City to review the ongoing restoration and construction work supported by the Heydar Aliyev Foundation.
Mehriban Aliyeva was accompanied by Cardinal James Harvey, Archpriest of the Basilica. During the visit, Priest Don Lodovico Turrisi and architect Marco Ciriachi provided the Azerbaijani First Vice-President with detailed information about the Basilica’s historical features and the restoration efforts currently underway.
The Basilica of Saint Paul Outside the Walls, one of the four major papal basilicas in Rome, holds immense spiritual and historical significance as it was built over the burial site of Saint Paul the Apostle. It is the second-largest church in Vatican City after St. Peter’s Basilica and was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1980. The Basilica is renowned for its remarkable architecture, including mosaic portraits of all popes from St. Peter to the present day, and its tranquil, spiritual atmosphere.
The ongoing restoration project forms part of a broader cooperation between the Heydar Aliyev Foundation and the Vatican. On September 11, 2024, within the framework of the “Jubilee Year” celebrated by the Holy See every 25 years, a document was signed between the Governorate of Vatican City State and the Heydar Aliyev Foundation to ensure the preservation and restoration of the marble coverings and decorative elements of the Basilica.
The agreement was signed by Cardinal Fernando Vérgez Alzaga, then-President of the Governorate of Vatican City State, and Anar Alakbarov, Assistant to the President of Azerbaijan and Executive Director of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation.
The visit by First Vice-President Mehriban Aliyeva reaffirmed Azerbaijan’s commitment to promoting cultural preservation and interfaith dialogue through the Heydar Aliyev Foundation’s support of global heritage initiatives.
