Francis held a private audience this morning with European parliament president Martin Schulz, a former Charlemagne Prize recipient, EU Commission President Jean- Claude Junker and EU Council President Donald Tusk, ahead of the midday ceremony. He also met with German Chancellor Angela Merkel.
The Charlemagne prize is awarded annually by the German city of Aachen for contributions to European unity. Previous winners include former US President Bill Clinton and St John Paul II, who received a special edition of the prize in 2004.
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