DIPLOMATIC RELATIONS BETWEEN HOLY SEE AND MONTENEGRO

VATICAN CITY, DEC 16, 2006 (VIS) - According to a communique made public this morning, "the Holy See and the Republic of Montenegro, in the desire to foment relations of mutual friendship, have decided, in common agreement, to establish diplomatic relations, at the level of an apostolic nunciature on the part of the Holy See, and of an embassy on the part of the Republic of Montenegro."

  A note attached to the communique recalls that, "in 1852, the Austro-Hungarian empire and Russia recognized Montenegro as a secular Principality" and that, "in 1886, a convention was signed by the Principality and the Holy See, in which the Catholic Church was officially recognized."

  "Following the victory of communist partisans at the end of the Second World War," the note continues, "the monarchy was abolished and Montenegro became one of the six republics making up the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, governed until 1980 by Marshall Tito. ... As Yugoslavia disintegrated between 1991 and 1995, Montenegro remained united to Serbia. In 2003 it adhered to the Union of Serbia and Montenegro, … which was dissolved by the declaration of separation by the Montenegrin parliament in 2006."

  "The Holy See recognized the Republic of Montenegro on June 19, 2006. Currently, the country has two Catholic ecclesiastical circumscriptions: the archdiocese of Antivari (Bar), which is immediately subject to the Holy See and has 11,500 Catholics, mostly Albanians, 19 parishes, 12 priests and 34 female religious; and the diocese of Cattaro (Kotor), suffragan of Spalato (Split), with 10,000 Catholics, mostly Croats, 23 parishes, 15 priests and 31 female religious. The two ordinaries belong to the International Episcopal Conference of Sts. Cyril and Methodius."
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