Force Nexus: The Secret Vatican Pt.3/4

Since medieval times the episcopal see of Rome has been recognized as a sovereign entity. The Holy See maintains formal diplomatic relations with 177 sovereign states, the European Union, and the Sovereign Military Order of Malta; 69 of the diplomatic missions accredited to the Holy See are situated in Rome, though those countries then have two embassies in the same city, since, by agreement between the Holy See and Italy, the same person cannot be accredited simultaneously to both. Dual accreditation with a country other than Italy is acceptable, whether the mission is situated in Rome or elsewhere. The Holy See also has relations of a special nature with Russia and the Palestine Liberation Organization. The Holy See maintains 179 permanent diplomatic missions abroad, of which 73 are non-residential, so that it has in all 106 concrete missions, some of which are accredited not only to the country in which they are situated, but also to one or more other countries or international organizations. The diplomatic activities of the Holy See are directed by the Secretariat of State through the Section for Relations with States. There are 16 internationally-recognized states with which the Holy See does not have relations. Nine are Islamic (Afghanistan, Saudi Arabia, Brunei, Comoros, Malaysia, the Maldives, Mauritania, Oman, and Somalia), four are communist, and the remaining three are Bhutan, Burma, and Tuvalu.

The Holy See has the oldest continuous diplomatic service in the world, tracing its origins to at least as far back as 325 with its original legation to the First Council of Nicaea.

The Holy See is the only European subject of international law that has diplomatic relations with the Republic of China. It held official relations with China since 1942, and when victory in the Chinese Civil War went to the Communist Party of China, the Holy See\'s diplomatic representative chose not to withdraw to Taipei with the Kuomintang government. However, the Communist government expelled him, and the Holy See\'s diplomatic mission was then transferred to Taipei. When in 1971 the seat of China at the United Nations was adjudicated to the government of the People\'s Republic of China, the Holy See downgraded its mission in Taipei: since then, it has been headed only by a chargé d\'affaires. Talks between the mainland government and the Holy See on diplomatic relations have been reported to be ongoing, with the main issue being the treatment of Catholics in mainland China. The government rejects the Holy See\'s spiritual authority over these, and uses the Chinese Patriotic Catholic Association as a means to exclude it.