Pope Leo XIV arrived on his first foreign trip to Turkey and later Lebanon, a visit that fulfills the late Pope Francis’ plans to mark an important Christian anniversary and bring a message of peace to the region at a crucial time for efforts to end the war in Ukraine and ease Mideast tensions.

In Ankara, Leo will meet with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and then travel to Istanbul for three days of ecumenical and interfaith meetings that will be followed by the Lebanese leg of his trip until Tuesday.

Leo’s main reason for traveling to Turkey is to mark the 1,700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea, Christianity’s first ecumenical council.

In 325 AD, that council hashed out the first version of the Nicene Creed, a statement of faith that millions of Christians still recite each Sunday.

For the Vatican, Lebanon and its tradition of religious tolerance in the Middle East is a bulwark for Christians in the region, even more so after years of conflict and war that have shrunk Christian communities that date from the time of the Apostles.

At the start of the flight to Turkey, Leo wished Americans a ‘Happy Thanksgiving’.

Leo offered a word of thanks when he came to the back of the papal plane to greet the estimated 80 journalists who are travelling with the Vatican delegation.

“To the Americans here, Happy Thanksgiving!” he said. “It’s a wonderful day to celebrate.”

History’s first American Pope thanked the journalists for their work, saying it was important today to transmit information “that really reveals the truth and the harmony that the world needs.”

At least two journalists presented Leo with pumpkin pies.

He was also gifted a baseball bat once owned by legendary White Sox player Nellie Fox, and a pair of White Sox-branded slippers and socks.

The latter gift was a reference to Leo’s quip last week that he only wears white socks, a play on words about his beloved Chicago baseball team.

AP video shot by: Paolo Santalucia and Trisha Thomas