pontifical

The conference led to a revision of the Church law on "pontifical secrecy" allowing co-operation with the civil courts when required in cases of abuse.

While some reforms have been made – Pope Francis lifted the official pontifical secret covering abuse cases in 2019 – core issues remain.

In a more recent ruling, Judge David Foxton of Britain’s Commercial Court ruled in June that the Holy See couldn’t rely on the “pontifical secret” to shield high-level communications between top Vatican officials from discovery.

Paolo Ruffini, in charge of communications for the meeting, denied the debate had been put under the pontifical secret, one of the highest forms of confidentiality in the church.

The establishment of a resident pontifical representative in Vietnam could lead to full diplomatic relations.