Russian President Vladimir Putin arrived in Rome Thursday for a lightning visit including talks with the pope and Italy's populist government, which has called for an easing of sanctions despite Moscow's ongoing crisis with the West.
Rome's historic centre is on security lockdown for the visit with 50 streets blocked to traffic and Italian media reporting that mobile phone signals could be scrambled.
Putin landed around an hour late at Fiumicino airport and his convoy drove into Rome and the Vatican City where he met the pope for closed-door talks.
Putin has arrived late for all three of their encounters, the last of which was in 2015 when the pope urged all parties to the conflict in Ukraine to make a "sincere effort" for peace.
Thursday's meeting comes a day before the pope receives leaders of Ukraine's Greek Catholic Church.
Pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine are mostly Russian Orthdodox, while those they fight are Orthodox and Greek Catholic.
Francis first met Putin in 2013, as the Roman Catholic Church sought to improve ties with the Russian Orthodox Church.
Only in 2009 did the Vatican and Moscow re-establish full diplomatic ties which were severed during Soviet times.
Relations have improved since the coming to power in the same year of Patriarch Kirill, who headed up the Russian Orthodox Church's diplomatic arm for years.
The Russian Orthodox Church has frequently accused the Catholic Church of proselytising in Russia, an Orthodox Christian country of 144 million.
The pope in 2016 held a historic meeting with Kirill in Cuba, the first encounter between the heads of the two largest Christian churches since Christianity split into Western and Eastern branches in the 11th Century -- an event known as "The Great Schism."
Kremlin advisor Yuri Ushakov said on Wednesday that "for the time being a possible invitation for the pope to visit Russia is not on the agenda."
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