JAKARTA, Indonesia — Pope Francis appealed for religious unity Wednesday to confront extremism and intolerance, as the 87-year-old pontiff’s longest term in office gained momentum in Muslim-majority Indonesia.

On the first day of a four-country visit to the Asia-Pacific region, the pope focused on the role that all faiths can play in security flashpoints.

“To promote a peaceful and fruitful harmony that will ensure peace… the Church wishes to strengthen interreligious dialogue,” the pope said in a speech after meeting with President Joko Widodo.

“(Extremists) try to impose their views through the distortion of religion, using deception and violence.”

The Pope also said that vested interests stand in the way of the religious unity he called for and are the cause of wars around the world, without referring to any specific war.

“In various regions, we are witnessing the outbreak of violent conflicts, which are often the result of… an intolerant desire for one’s own interests, position or historical narrative to prevail at all costs,” he said.

Widodo repeated the Pope’s words.

“Indonesia, together with the Vatican, wants to spread freedom and tolerance… amid an increasingly troubled world,” he said.

Indonesia, the world’s most populous Muslim-majority country, has long struggled with Islamist extremism.

The 2002 bombings on the resort island of Bali, which killed 202 people, were the bloodiest in Indonesian history and led to a brutal crackdown on militants.

Catholics make up less than three percent of Indonesia’s population — about eight million people — while Muslims make up 87 percent, or 242 million.

However, they constitute one of six officially recognised religions or denominations in this nominally secular country, along with Protestantism, Buddhism, Hinduism and Confucianism.

The pope’s trip to Indonesia is his third in history and the first since Pope John Paul II in 1989.

Fragile health

The pope’s health will be put to the test during the trip, which will also take in Papua New Guinea, East Timor and Singapore.

He has not travelled abroad since visiting Marseille, France, last September.

He was accompanied on the trip to Indonesia by his personal doctor and two nurses, but Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni said this was standard procedure.

The pope appeared well-rested when he arrived in Jakarta from Rome on Tuesday and again when he met with Widodo on Wednesday morning, the first major event of his trip.

He arrived in a civilian Toyota car, sat in the front passenger seat, then got out in a wheelchair to greet the spectators.

Hundreds of children dressed in traditional costumes shouted, chanting “welcome Pope” and waving flags.

He was welcomed by Widodo and Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto, the country’s president-elect, who will take office next month.

The Pope rose from his wheelchair and began talking to the Indonesian leader, using his cane to help him.

As he left the palace, dozens of people waiting outside tried to chase his car.

The Pope was later scheduled to hold a private meeting with members of the Society of Jesus – the Jesuit order to which he belongs – at the Holy See’s mission in Jakarta.

Meeting with the faithful

The main theme of his stay in Indonesia is interfaith ties.

On Thursday, he is to host a meeting with representatives of all six religions at the Istiqlal Mosque, the largest in Southeast Asia and a symbol of religious coexistence.

According to the Indonesian bishops’ conference, he will sign a joint declaration with the mosque’s grand imam focusing on “dehumanization” through the spread of conflict, as well as environmental degradation.

The Pope will celebrate Mass on Thursday at the national football stadium, which can hold 80,000 fans. The Catholic crowd is expected to be packed.

In a gesture of solidarity, the religious affairs ministry has called on television stations not to broadcast daily Muslim twilight prayers during masses and instead use text reminders.

Earlier on Wednesday afternoon, the pope will try to reassure local believers by giving a speech at the Jakarta Cathedral, which is across the street from the mosque.

The cathedral, connected to the mosque by a “friendship tunnel,” was rebuilt in the late 19th century after a fire. Recently, Christians have been taking selfies there with a 1:1 cutout of the pope.

The Pope will end the day with a meeting with young people from a global network of schools aimed at helping disadvantaged children, which he founded in 2013.