Gorbachev: Pope was 'example to all of us'
Sunday, April 3, 2005 Posted: 3:48 PM EDT (1948 GMT)
 |  Pope John Paul II welcomes Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev to the Vatican in December 1989. |
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 Clergy and dignitaries view pope's body, pay their respects.
 College of Cardinals will make funeral preparations.
 The widely traveled pope felt it important to be with the people.
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MOSCOW,
Russia (CNN) -- Former Soviet Union leader Mikhail Gorbachev said
Sunday that Pope John Paul II's "devotion to his followers is a
remarkable example to all of us."
Gorbachev, who once said
the collapse of the Iron Curtain would have been impossible without
John Paul II, said the pope condemned communism the first time the two
met in 1989, shortly after the fall of the Berlin Wall. (World reaction)
The
pontiff, who began his papacy in 1978 when the Soviets dominated his
Polish homeland and Eastern Europe, was a harsh critic of communism and
offered support to those fighting for change from within.
"We had
a really interesting, albeit perhaps too emotional conversation,"
Gorbachev said. "He told me he ... was very, very critical of
communism.
The pope indirectly brought up the Berlin Wall during their meeting, Gorbachev said.
"He
wanted my opinion on the prospect of a united Europe," he said. "The
Berlin Wall was of course part of that, but really he was talking about
ending the Cold War."
Gorbachev's economic reforms, known as perestroika, helped liberalize Soviet society in the 1980s.
The
former Soviet leader, who was forced to resign as his nation broke up
in 1991, said the pope also expressed criticism for capitalism during
their 1989 meeting.
"He said, 'I don't serve any political
parties, I serve God,' " Gorbachev recalled. " 'So I'm after the same
things that you are trying to achieve with your perestroika.' "
Gorbachev said he told the pope he "had a lot of criticism for him, too."
A
day after their meeting, Gorbachev said, he traveled to Malta to meet
with President George H.W. Bush. They later announced that the United
States and Soviet Union were no longer enemies. "So, see, it's all
interconnected," Gorbachev said.
"I will never forget [the pope's] words about Europe. 'Europe,' he said, 'must breathe with both its lungs.' "
Gorbachev said the pope told him, "We are praying for you."
"I
mourn his loss," Gorbachev said. "We knew it was coming to this. What
can I say -- it must have been the will of God. He acted really
courageously."
The 84-year-old pontiff died Saturday in his private apartment at the Vatican. (Full story)
The Vatican said he died from septic shock and cardio-circulatory collapse.
CNN's Ryan Chilcote contributed to this report.
