VATICAN-VIETNAM Pope sends condolences to Hanoi over death of Communist Party secretary

In a telegram signed by Cardinal Secretary of State, Fr. Parolin, the Pope recalled the role played by Nguyen Phu Trong in recent years “in encouraging and promoting the positive development of relations between Vietnam and the Holy See.” A sign of closeness to the country at a time of extremely delicate transition.

Vatican City () – Pope Francis has sent a telegram to Vietnamese President To Lam to express his condolences on the death of the Secretary General of the Communist Party of Vietnam, Nguyen Phu Trong, in Hanoi on Friday 19 July. The gesture was intended to expressly highlight the role played by the leader, who died recently at the age of 80, “in encouraging and promoting the positive development of relations between Vietnam and the Holy See.”

The telegram, signed by Cardinal Secretary of State of the Vatican Pietro Parolin, says that Pope Francis “sends his condolences to all those who mourn his loss, especially to his family, assuring them of his prayers for peace and consolation for all of them.” “Pope Francis – says the text sent to To Lam and released today by the Vatican Press Office – also sends the pledge of his spiritual closeness to His Excellency (President To Lam ed.) and to all his fellow citizens in this moment of sorrow for the nation.”

As general secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam, Nguyen Phu Trong has been the figure at the top of the country’s political hierarchy since 2011. He died while still in office and his funeral is scheduled to be held in Hanoi on July 26, at the end of two days of national mourning. Nguyen Phu Trong was responsible for the implementation of the so-called “bamboo policy”, which also includes relations with the Vatican. These were sealed last year with the signing of the agreement thanks to which the Holy See was able to send a permanent representative to Hanoi in December, Archbishop Marek Zarewsky, who had already published a statement expressing the Holy See’s condolences that was reproduced by Vietnamese Catholic websites.

Pope Francis’ telegram and the reference to Nguyen Phu Trong’s role in relations with the Holy See show how closely the Vatican is following the evolution of the political situation in Hanoi, where the very delicate succession of Nguyen Phu Trong is intertwined with the clashes within the party. The rise in recent months of former Public Security Minister To Lam was in fact due to the “resignation” of many other prominent leaders affected by the anti-corruption campaigns, including former President Vo Vhan Tuong himself, with whom the Holy See had signed agreements last July. It is evidently hoped that there will be no change of course in the restoration of full diplomatic relations and the desired visit of the Pope, who was already officially invited by Hanoi in December.

Following the trip made in April by the Secretary for Relations with States, Msgr. Paul Richard Gallagher, Cardinal Parolin was also due to travel to Vietnam at the end of the year. An agenda that will now have to be verified in light of the internal evolution of the situation in Hanoi.