German Chancellor Angela Merkel meets Pope Francis on Saturday and calls for stronger regulation of financial markets to counter the problems that have rocked the global economy.<br/> <br />Merkel made a lightning visit to Rome specifically to meet the pontiff and spoke with him privately in his library for 45 minutes, unusually long for a private papal audience.<br/> <br />Merkel, the daughter of a Lutheran minister, said she and Francis had spoken mainly about globalisation and the role of Europe in the world.<br/> <br />On Thursday, Francis issued a strong call for world financial reform, condemning a heartless "dictatorship of the economy" and saying the economic crisis had made life worse for millions in rich and poor countries.<br/> <br />In his first major speech about finance since his election in March, he also urged states to take greater control of their economies and protect the weakest.<br/> <br />Merkel gave Francis, who lived briefly in Germany when he was a Jesuit priest, three volumes of poetr
