Pope Francis confirmed on Friday that he is thinking of travelling to the Canary Islands due to the migration crisis that the islands are experiencing and to show his "closeness to the rulers and the people", in the press conference on board the plane returning from his tour of Asia and Oceania.
"I am thinking of going to the Canary Islands because there is the situation with the migrants who arrive from the sea and I would like to be close to the rulers and the people of the Canary Islands," said the Pope when asked about a possible visit to the islands, for example as a stopover on a hypothetical trip to Argentina.
One of the options that was being considered was that the visit to the Canary Islands would be a stopover on his trip to his country, since the pontiff himself, 87 years old, has confirmed that he wants to travel to Argentina, although today he gained more strength that if he goes to the archipelago it will be a one-off trip.
The trip to Argentina "is something that has not been decided," said Francisco, before adding: "I would like to go. It is my town, but it is not decided, there are several things to resolve first," thus moving away from the possibility of the trip.
A total of 6,267 migrants arrived in the Canary Islands during the months of July and August and with these figures of arrivals this summer it is a record since statistics have been kept and they are notably different from the number of the last five years in the same period.
Until September, 25,524 people have arrived on the Canary Islands' coasts, which represents an increase of 123% compared to the same period in 2023.
The president of the Spanish Episcopal Conference, Luis Argüello, recently pointed out that if Pope Francis finally visited Spain, "by intuition" the chosen place could be the Canary Islands, to learn about the situation of the hundreds of immigrants who arrive on its shores from Africa every month.
The possibility of Francis travelling to the Canary Islands has been on the table since 22 January, when the Canarian president, Fernando Clavijo, confirmed after meeting at the Vatican that the Pope told him that "he was going to think about it" and showed him that he was aware of the humanitarian emergency that is taking place in Ruta Atlántica.
During his pontificate, Pope Francis has shown his attention to the migratory crises and especially to the flows towards Europe with his visit to the Italian island of Lampedusa, the first of his pontificate, and he has also been twice to the Greek island of Lesbos.
With a possible visit to the Canary Islands, Francis would become the first pontiff to set foot on the archipelago, and it would also be his first trip to Spain.
"I am thinking of going to the Canary Islands because there is the situation with the migrants who arrive from the sea and I would like to be close to the rulers and the people of the Canary Islands," said the Pope when asked about a possible visit to the islands, for example as a stopover on a hypothetical trip to Argentina.
One of the options that was being considered was that the visit to the Canary Islands would be a stopover on his trip to his country, since the pontiff himself, 87 years old, has confirmed that he wants to travel to Argentina, although today he gained more strength that if he goes to the archipelago it will be a one-off trip.
The trip to Argentina "is something that has not been decided," said Francisco, before adding: "I would like to go. It is my town, but it is not decided, there are several things to resolve first," thus moving away from the possibility of the trip.
A total of 6,267 migrants arrived in the Canary Islands during the months of July and August and with these figures of arrivals this summer it is a record since statistics have been kept and they are notably different from the number of the last five years in the same period.
Until September, 25,524 people have arrived on the Canary Islands' coasts, which represents an increase of 123% compared to the same period in 2023.
The president of the Spanish Episcopal Conference, Luis Argüello, recently pointed out that if Pope Francis finally visited Spain, "by intuition" the chosen place could be the Canary Islands, to learn about the situation of the hundreds of immigrants who arrive on its shores from Africa every month.
The possibility of Francis travelling to the Canary Islands has been on the table since 22 January, when the Canarian president, Fernando Clavijo, confirmed after meeting at the Vatican that the Pope told him that "he was going to think about it" and showed him that he was aware of the humanitarian emergency that is taking place in Ruta Atlántica.
During his pontificate, Pope Francis has shown his attention to the migratory crises and especially to the flows towards Europe with his visit to the Italian island of Lampedusa, the first of his pontificate, and he has also been twice to the Greek island of Lesbos.
With a possible visit to the Canary Islands, Francis would become the first pontiff to set foot on the archipelago, and it would also be his first trip to Spain.
