Polish president says Catholic faith binds Poland, Philippines

Polish President Karol Nawrocki said during a state visit to the Philippines that the Catholic faith serves as a shared foundation for the relations between Poland and the Philippines. Speaking at the University of Santo Tomas in Manila on Oct. 7, 2026, Nawrocki noted that religion plays an important role in both societies by shaping values such as family, solidarity, responsibility, and care for others.

Nawrocki, who is conducting the first state visit to the Philippines by a Polish president, traced the historical ties between the two nations to Catholic missionaries from the Spanish colonial period. He specifically mentioned Wojciech Męciński, a Jesuit priest from Kraków believed to be the first Pole to visit the Philippines in the 17th century.

The president also honored St. John Paul II as a key figure connecting the two predominantly Catholic countries. He noted that the late pope visited the Philippines in 1981 and 1995, with the second visit occurring during the first World Youth Day held in Asia in Manila.