What is the Holy See and why does it get a seat at the UN General Assembly?
The Holy See is the governing authority of the Roman Catholic Church, headed by the Pope, and it holds a unique seat at the UN not as a full member but as one of only two permanent observer states, giving it the right to speak at the General Assembly without a vote.
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spio.comMost people use "the Vatican," "the Holy See," and "the Catholic Church" as if they mean the same thing. They do not, and the distinction is the whole reason this seat at the UN makes sense.
The Holy See and Vatican City are two different things
The term "Holy See" refers to the supreme authority of the Pope as Bishop of Rome and head of the college of Bishops. It is the central government of the Roman Catholic Church. Think of it as the executive office, not the building.
Under international law and in practice, the Holy See has a legal personality that allows it to enter into treaties as the juridical equal of a state and to send and receive diplomatic representatives. That last part is the key: it can conduct diplomacy the way a country can.
Vatican City was created by the Lateran Treaty in 1929 to ensure the Catholic Church's independence from the control of other countries, and it is tiny, about one-eighth the size of Central Park. Vatican City is the physical or territorial base of the Holy See, almost a pedestal upon which it rests. It is the Holy See, however, which internationally represents Vatican City State.
Why it gets a seat at the UN
The Holy See is a nearly 2,000-year-old term that refers to the international sovereignty of the Pope, or leader of the Roman Catholic Church. Because it holds recognized sovereignty and conducts diplomacy, the UN treats it as a state-equivalent entity.
The Holy See is not a member of the United Nations, not having applied for membership, but was granted permanent observer state status on 6 April 1964. It enjoys, by its own choice, the status of Permanent Observer rather than of a full member. This is due primarily to the desire of the Holy See to maintain absolute neutrality in specific political problems.
The UN General Assembly has granted observer status to two non-member states, the Holy See and the State of Palestine, as well as many international organizations and other entities, to enable them to participate in the work of the General Assembly, though with limitations.
What observer status actually means
Then, in 2004, that status was strengthened. On 1 July 2004, the Holy See gained all the rights of full membership except voting rights, submission of resolution proposals without co-sponsoring, and putting forward candidates.
This makes the Holy See the only religious entity represented among the 193 UN member states and Palestine, the other non-member observer state.
So when Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Holy See's Secretary of State, stepped to the podium at the 81st UN General Assembly as the sixth speaker of Watch Day 5, he was representing not a country in the ordinary sense but a 2,000-year-old institution that holds a singular legal status, a sovereign government whose territory is a walled enclave smaller than many city neighborhoods, but whose reach, through 1.3 billion Catholics and diplomatic ties with governments around the world, is as global as it gets.
Cardinal Parolin at the 81st General Assembly
On Saturday, September 26, 2026, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Holy See’s Secretary of State, addressed the general debate of the 81st UN General Assembly on behalf of Pope Leo XIV. It showed exactly what the observer seat is for: the Holy See cannot vote, but it speaks from the same podium as the world’s presidents and prime ministers.
Highlights
- Trust first. He opened on the collapse of trust between nations, saying that “multilateralism is in crisis” and that agreements are too often not kept.
- Peace as justice, not just a ceasefire. Peace, he argued, is more than the absence of war, and he called for a move from a “culture of power” to a “culture of negotiation.”
- Ukraine. After more than four years of war, he called for weapons to fall silent and bombing to stop.
- Gaza and the Middle East. He raised the humanitarian crisis in Gaza and the future of Christians in Lebanon and across the region. During the same week he restated the Holy See’s support for a two-state solution.
- AI and weapons. He said decisions to kill must never be handed to automated systems, and that control of AI must not sit with a few.
- Humanitarian law. Attacks on hospitals, homes and power grids, he said, are serious violations, and the law of war is binding, not optional.
- Forgotten crises. He named Sudan, the east of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Rohingya of Myanmar.
- Religious freedom. He called it the first of human rights and spoke of Christians persecuted for their faith.
In his own words
On trust and the UN:
“Every international institution, beyond its legal framework, requires mutual trust among its members to be effective.”
“International relations today are characterized by a growing lack of trust among actors, especially through the disregard of the principle pacta sunt servanda.”
“Multilateralism is in crisis.”
On peace and war:
“Peace is not a ‘negative’ word, that is the mere absence of war.”
“Peace is the fruit of justice.”
“The passing of time does not make a war any less intolerable; rather, it makes the responsibility of those who can end or help bring it to an end all the more grave.”
“War brings only death and destruction, whereas peace brings development and prosperity.”
“No true peace is possible without genuine common resolve for disarmament.”
On Ukraine:
“After more than four years of war in Ukraine, the death toll continues to rise.”
“Peace cannot be postponed; weapons must fall silent and bombardments must cease.”
On AI and weapons:
“The control of these powerful tools must not remain in the hands of a select few; they must serve humanity, not the other way around.”
“The decision to use lethal force cannot be delegated to opaque or automated processes, but must remain under effective, self-aware and responsible human control.”
On the law of war:
“International humanitarian law is not a flexible or optional instrument subordinate to military convenience; it is a binding commitment of States.”
On faith and human dignity:
“Christians in many parts of the world continue to suffer discrimination, violence, and outright persecution simply because of their faith.”
“The human person remains the measure of all progress.”
“Work is not merely a means of production, but an irreplaceable participation in the creative work of God.”
At the UN meeting on the two-state solution, September 24:
“The two-state solution, based on secure and internationally recognized borders, is the only viable and equitable path toward a just and lasting peace.”
Watch and read the full speech
UN Web TVWatch the general debate on UN Web TV- Read Cardinal Parolin’s full address on the Holy See Mission to the UN website
Follow-ups
What were the highlights, key points, priorities and notable excerpts and quotes in Johann Wadephul's speech at the UN General Assembly?Germany's Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul used his address at the 81st UN General Assembly to make Ukraine the centerpiece of his speech, calling on every member state to push Russia toward the negotiating table, while also taking aim at protectionism, backing UN reform, and holding a landmark face-to-face meeting wit
Germany's Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul used his address at the 81st UN General Assembly to make Ukraine the centerpiece of his speech, calling on every member state to push Russia toward the negotiating table, while also taking aim at protectionism, backing UN reform, and holding a landmark face-to-face meeting with his Russian counterpart on the sidelines, the first such meeting between German and Russian top diplomats since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Johann Wadephul, 63, is Germany's Minister for Foreign Affairs, serving under Chancellor Friedrich Merz of the Christian Democratic Union. A lawyer and long-serving member of the Bundestag, Germany's federal parliament, he also holds the rank of lieutenant colonel in the reserves of the Bundeswehr, Germany's armed forces. He took office, succeeding Annalena Baerbock.
Highlights
- Ukraine as the defining test of the UN's purpose. Wadephul put the war in Ukraine at the heart of his address. As the Associated Press reported, he told the Assembly: "Russia's war targets the lives of millions of innocent people, the existence of the Ukrainian state and culture and the European peace order." He went further, warning that the war also endangered "vital aid supplies for millions of people, especially in Africa, Asia and the Middle East," making the point that what happens in Europe does not stay in Europe.
- A direct call to every member state. Wadephul framed the moment as a test of collective will. The German news agency dpa reported his words from the rostrum: "I call on every member state to join us in convincing Russia that the future is shaped at the negotiating table and not on the corpses in cities and villages. The day on which negotiations finally begin will be a good day for the United Nations."
- Defending the rules-based order. Before departing for New York, Wadephul set out his frame for the whole week. The Federal Foreign Office quoted him: "The prospect of lasting co-existence free from conflict has today had to yield to a mode of permanent escalation." His speech repeated that theme: that an order built on the UN Charter is not a Western preference but humanity's only working alternative to force.
- UN Security Council reform, with a specific ask. Wadephul backed expansion of the Security Council, arguing that the current membership no longer reflects the world as it is. Germany's position, consistent with what he argued at the 80th session as well, is that additional permanent seats must go to regions now underrepresented: Africa, Asia, and Latin America. He made no claim to a German permanent seat; Germany is instead running for a non-permanent seat for the 2027 to 2028 term.
- Condemning Russia's opposition to Security Council reform. The backdrop made this pointed. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, speaking later the same day, declared that Russia would veto any attempt by Germany or Japan to gain permanent seats on the Council, a direct shot at a goal Germany has long championed for others.
Priorities
- Get every UN member on record pressing Russia toward negotiations to end the war in Ukraine.
- Defend the UN Charter and the rules-based international order against what Wadephul called permanent escalation.
- Win a non-permanent Security Council seat for Germany for the 2027 to 2028 term.
- Expand the Council's permanent membership to reflect Africa, Asia, and Latin America.
In his own words
Reported by the Associated Press from the General Assembly rostrum:
"Russia's war targets the lives of millions of innocent people, the existence of the Ukrainian state and culture and the European peace order."
Reported by dpa from the same address:
"I call on every member state to join us in convincing Russia that the future is shaped at the negotiating table and not on the corpses in cities and villages. The day on which negotiations finally begin will be a good day for the United Nations."
From his pre-departure statement, published by the Federal Foreign Office:
"The prospect of lasting co-existence free from conflict has today had to yield to a mode of permanent escalation."
In the sideline meeting with Lavrov, reported by a German delegation official:
Wadephul called on Russia to abandon its "dangerous path of escalation" toward Germany, Europe and the NATO alliance, while also expressing openness to a better relationship, on the condition that Russia showed genuine willingness to end the war.
Worth knowing
The sideline meeting between Wadephul and Lavrov was itself a headline. The two met at Russia's initiative for roughly 20 minutes, what the Associated Press described as the first such tête-à-tête between German and Russian top diplomats since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Lavrov afterward said at a news conference that "nothing new came from" the conversation. The meeting came against a backdrop of sharply deteriorating German-Russian relations, including an attempted drone attack at Leipzig airport that Germany has attributed to Russia, and a series of tit-for-tat responses since.
Germany won election to a non-permanent Security Council seat for 2027 to 2028 at the 81st session, the vote taking place in June. That win gives Wadephul's calls for reform and accountability direct institutional weight.
Watch and read the full speech
UN Web TVWatch Germany's address at the 81st UN General Assembly on UN Web TVRead Wadephul's pre-departure statement on the Federal Foreign Office website
Saturday, September 26 is Day 5 of the general debate at the 81st UN General Assembly, with 33 speakers: 19 in the morning, from China’s Vice President Han Zheng to Germany’s Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul, and 14 in the afternoon, from San Marino’s Luca Beccari to Cameroon’s Lejeune Mbella Mbella.
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