VATICAN - Pope Francis was all smiles when German Chancellor Angela Merkel popped to the Vatican to discuss climate change ahead of a G20 summit. Merkel said the pope encouraged her to work to preserve the Paris climate accord despite US President Donald Trump's withdrawal from the agreement at the beginning of the month. She added that Francis shared her aim to 'bring down walls' rather than building them. The pair met for around 40 minutes today. Their talks come ahead of the G20 summit Germany is hosting in Hamburg on 7 and 8 July. Merkel told reporters that she also briefed the pope on Germany's G20 agenda