Vatican City, Jun 18, 2007 / 09:24 am
Representatives of the Holy See and of Vietnam met recently to discuss the re-establishing of bilateral diplomatic relations after decades of tensions between the two sides have eased.
The Vatican’s undersecretary for relations with States, Archbishop Pietro Parolin, said, “We foresee a way of reaching diplomatic relations,” and that the Vatican delegation also asked Vietnamese officials for information about Father Nguyen Van Ly, who was sentenced to eight years in prison after a trial that lasted merely one day.
According to the Vietnamese government, Father Van Ly, a renowned defender of human rights in the country, was found guilt of spreading “propaganda against the Communist regime.” In 2006, he founded a democracy movement in the country known as “Block 8406.”
Archbishop Parolin said he had received a response from Vietnamese officials and that he was optimistic about the talks.