In pictures: Pope Francis visits Mexico

Pope Francis is currently on a historic five-day visit to Mexico.

The Argentine pope is the first Catholic pontiff to visit the presidential palace since Mexico and the Vatican restored diplomatic relations in 1992, after years of animosity because of the church’s role in the country’s politics.

Francis was welcomed on Saturday by exuberant crowds in Mexico City after a stop-off in Cuba where he met Russian Orthodox Patriarch Kirill, in the first papal meeting with the head of the Russian Orthodox Church in nearly 1,000 years.

Local Catholics hope that the pontiff’s message of peace will resonate through the country and beyond.