Pope Francis expressed support for protecting the equality of Croats in Bosnia and Herzegovina on Wednesday in a meeting with Bosnian Croat leader and House of Peoples speaker Dragan Covic, according to a press release by the Parliament.

Dragan Covic, the leader of the strongest Bosnian Croat party in the country, the Croat Democratic Union (HDZ BiH), met with the Pope and the Vatican’s Secretary of State, Pietro Parolin, to discuss the overall situation in Bosnia, the implementation of the treaty between the country and the Vatican, and the position of Bosnian Croats.

Covic expressed gratitude to the Pope for his support to Bosnia and the Bosnian Croat people, the press release said.