VATICAN (CWNews.com) - The Holy See and the Palestinian Authority will sign a diplomatic accord on February 15, establishing the juridical status of the Church in the Palestinian territories. Palestinian President Yasser Arafat will meet be in Rome for the formal signing of the document. He will also meet with Pope John Paul II.
The new document will also reinforce diplomatic relations between the Holy See and the Palestinian Authority. Diplomatic ties are now governed by the terms of a joint communique that was signed in October 1994; before that agreement, all contacts had been arranged on an informal basis. Since April 1998, a joint commission of Vatican and Palestinian representatives has been working out the details of the new agreement.
While the new agreement has no direct impact on the plans for the visit by Pope John Paul II to the Holy Land in March 2000, the Holy See has emphasized its desire to conclude a more formal agreement with the Palestinian Authority before the papal trip. The agreement also comes at a time when the Vatican is strengthening ties to the Arabic world. On February 8 the Holy See announced an exchange of diplomatic representatives with the Arab League, and earlier the Vatican had announced the opening of formal diplomatic relations with Bahrain. Pope John Paul himself will travel to Egypt on February 24-26.
Catholic World News Service - Vatican Update