Vatican City is the smallest independent state in the world, and is home to the Roman Catholic Church. The Vatican has been sovereign since 1929, when the Lateran Treaty was signed between Italy and Pope Pius XI. The treaty declared that Vatican City would be an independent state and recognized the pope as its head of state.
Since then, Vatican City has become a major destination for tourists from around the world, with its iconic St. Peter’s Basilica and other attractions like the Sistine Chapel and museums. The Vatican also serves as a center for diplomatic relations, hosting foreign dignitaries from around the world.
In 2013, Pope Francis was elected to lead the Catholic Church, becoming its first pope from Latin America. Under his papacy, Pope Francis has focused on social issues such as poverty and inequality. He has also sought to bring about greater transparency in church finances and governance.
In recent years, Vatican City has faced increasing pressure from European Union countries over its fiscal policies due to concerns about money laundering and tax evasion by some of its financial institutions. In response to this criticism, Pope Francis instituted reforms in 2019 aimed at increasing transparency in Vatican finances and improving oversight of its financial operations.
Yearbook 2011
Vatican City. Hundreds of thousands of Catholics gathered in May when the former Pope John Paul II was blessed. Some criticism, however, was against the plans for the next saint declaration, due to the scandal involving sex offenses against children who broke out even before John Paul’s death in 2005. Visit ABBREVIATIONFINDER for the acronym of VAT that stands for the country of Vatican.
According to Countryaah official site, the scandal continued to disrupt relationships with the outside world. An official report in Ireland accused the church of darkening abuses and triggering stinging criticism of the Vatican from the prime minister. The Vatican withdrew its envoy in Dublin. Later, Ireland decided to close its embassy in the Vatican City, officially for savings reasons.
When Pope Benedict XVI made his first state visit to his home country in September, hundreds of MPs boycotted his speech on Bundestag.
A New York judicial group stated that the pope and three cardinals have reported to the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague for crimes against humanity. The report was the victim of abuse in Germany, the United States, Belgium and the Netherlands.
In November, the Vatican decided to sue the Italian clothing giant Benetton for a commercial with a picture montage where the Pope and a Muslim imam are seen kissing each other.