Pope meets Czech PM at beginning of SS Cyril and Methodius year

Czech Prime Minister Petr Necas had a private meeting with Pope Benedict XVI in the Vatican on Friday at the start of the year marking the 1150th anniversary of Christian missionaries SS Cyril and Methodius' arrival in Great Moravia. The celebrations including dozens of events will culminate in Velehrad, a well-known pilgrimage site in south Moravia, in July 2013. Benedict XVI has been invited to attend the celebrations, but his visit has not been confirmed yet.