Pope Francis arrived in Cuba Saturday on the first leg of a high-profile trip that will also take him to the United States, highlighting his role in the rapprochement between the Cold War foes.

The Alitalia plane carrying Francis touched down at Havana's Jose Marti airport at 3:50 pm (1950 GMT), as thousands of people lined the road into the city, which was decked out in giant posters of the Argentine pontiff.