On January 11, 2020, Pope Francis appointed Italian Archbishop Celestino Migliore, 67, new Apostolic Nuncio in France. Up to now, he was Nuncio in Russia.
The choice of this international career diplomat manifests Pope Francis’ concern for the country. The Nuncio is a key man not only in Church and State relations, and of the local Church and Rome, but also in the appointment of future bishops.
Holder of a Doctorate in Canon Law, Monsignor Migliore entered the Holy See’s Diplomatic Service in 1980. He has worked in Pontifical Representations in Angola, the United States, Egypt, and Poland.
From 1992 50 1995 he was Permanent Observer of the Holy See at the Council of Europe, then Under-Secretary of the Secretariat of State’s Section for Relations with States, before being appointed Permanent Observer to the UN in New York in 2002. In 2010 he was appointed Apostolic Nuncio in Poland. And in 2016, Pope Francis appointed him Nuncio in Russia and, one year later, in Uzbekistan.
He speaks French, English, Spanish, Portuguese and Polish.
The new Nuncio succeeds Monsignor Luigi Ventura, who tendered his resignation last December 17. The Director of International Events at Paris’ City Hall questioned him for sexual aggression. The Paris Prosecutor’s Office opened an investigation and, last July, the Holy See lifted the diplomatic immunity he enjoyed.
