A new statue of the Pope John Paul II was unveiled in Moscow on Friday. “This is an extraordinary gesture by the Russian authorities for all Christians living in Russia,” Fr Jozef Zaniewski, rector of Moscow Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, said. “John Paul II loved Russia and wanted to come here, but he was not able to do it during his lifetime,” Zaniewski continued.
 Located in the backyard of the Library of Foreign Literature, the monument was created by Ukrainian sculptor Alexander Vasyatkin and Russian artists Ilya and Nikita Feklin. The decision to unveil it comes after John Paul’s former secretary, Cardinal Stanislaw Dziwisz, donated an ampoule of the Pope’s blood to the cathedral.
 The presentation ceremony of the Polish Pope’s statue took place on the day of the 33rd anniversary of the beginning of the conclave, which saw Cardinal Karol Wojtyla elected as pope two days later.