VZCZCXRO8104
PP RUEHDBU RUEHFL RUEHKW RUEHLA RUEHNP RUEHSL RUEHSR
DE RUEHROV #0126/01 3381633
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
P 041633Z DEC 09
FM AMEMBASSY VATICAN
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 1201
INFO RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE
RUEHMO/AMEMBASSY MOSCOW PRIORITY 0010
RUEHSI/AMEMBASSY TBILISI PRIORITY 0003
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC
RUEHROV/AMEMBASSY VATICAN 1240

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 VATICAN 000126 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL:  12/4/2019 
TAGS: PINR PGOV PREL KIRF RS VT
SUBJECT: RUSSIA AND THE VATICAN ESTABLISH FORMAL RELATIONS, FOR 
DIFFERENT REASONS 
 
REF: A. Vatican 100 
     ¶B. Vatican 64 
 
VATICAN 00000126  001.2 OF 003 
 
 
CLASSIFIED BY: Julieta Valls Noyes, DCM. 
REASON: 1.4 (b), (c), (d) 
Summary 
 
------- 
 
 
 
¶1. (C)  On December 3, Russian President Medvedev and Pope 
Benedict XVI upgraded Russian-Holy See ties to "full" diplomatic 
relations.  The announcement coincides with a period of warmer 
relations between the Vatican and Russian Orthodox Patriarch 
Kirill (reftel) and the Holy See hopes the move will herald 
stronger ecumenical relations.  The Russian motivation for 
upgrading relations, however, may have had more to do with 
domestic politics than a desire to improve inter-Christian 
understanding.  Regardless of the motivation, and at least for 
now, it appears unlikely the decision will make much of a 
difference in either Russian-Vatican relations or 
Catholic-Russian Orthodox ties.  End Summary. 
 
 
 
MEDVEDEV MEETS POPE, ANNOUNCES "FORMAL" TIES 
 
-------------------------------------------- 
 
 
 
¶2. (U) Following his meeting with Pope Benedict XVI on December 
3, Russian President Medvedev announced that he had signed a 
decree upgrading ties with the Vatican to "full diplomatic 
relations."  (Note:  Medvedev did not come to Rome solely to 
meet with the Pope, he had a bilateral summit with the Italians 
first.  End Note)  It is unclear what the change actually means, 
as Russia has had a de facto embassy -- led formally by a 
designated "Ambassador" -- to the Holy See since 1990.  The 
decision to open bilateral missions in Moscow and Rome came in 
1989, when Mikhail Gobachev and Pope John Paul II met on the eve 
of the fall of the Berlin Wall. Moreover, there also have been 
several top-level bilateral meetings in the ensuing years: 
then-President Putin met twice with Pope John Paul II (in 2000 
and 2003) and once with Pope Benedict XVI (2007).  This was 
Medvedev's first meeting with the Pope. 
 
 
 
RUSSIAN AMBASSADOR OFFERS FRANK VIEWS ON CONTEXT FOR 
ANNOUNCEMENT 
 
--------------------------------------------- -------------- 
------ 
 
 
 
¶3. (C) On December 1, two days before the Medvedev-Benedict 
meeting, Ambassador Diaz met with Nikolay Sadchikov, the Russian 
Federation's Ambassador to the Holy See.  Sadchikov foreshadowed 
-- but did not reveal -- the announcement on upgraded relations. 
 Ambassador Sadchikov, who is battling cancer and has played a 
low profile on the diplomatic circuit during his treatment, also 
was unusually frank in his discussion of Russian domestic 
politics, how they were affecting the Russian government's 
relations with the Orthodox Church, and how the relationship 
affected Russian Orthodox relations with the Catholic church. 
 
 
 
¶4. (C) Specifically, Sadchikov discussed internal Russian 
financial projections for 2009 and 2010, saying the Russian 
government believes next year is going to be much worse than 
this year due to the global financial crisis.  Russian 
authorities are concerned about internal stability and popular 
unrest in 2010.  Therefore, he confided, Russian authorities are 
trying to stimulate a "renaissance" of the Russian Orthodox 
Church as a vehicle to create hope among ordinary Russians and 
forestall instability in the coming year.  Sadchikov said he 
found this tactic odd given the extremely low numbers of Russian 
faithful. 
 
 
 
¶5. (C) Continuing with his uncharacteristic confidences, 
Sadchikov directly blamed immigrants (especially Muslims from 
the Caucuses) for internal government corruption in Russia and 
for the growth of organized crime.  He implied that this is a 
pervasive view in the GOR.  The Russian Ambassador said that 
"250,000 of the richest Georgians live in Moscow," and that 
something must be done about the immigrants in Russia. 
 
VATICAN 00000126  002.2 OF 003 
 
 
Sadchikov believes that Muslims only respond to force and spoke 
admiringly about the Swiss decision to ban minaret construction. 
 
 
 
¶6.  (C) Although Sadchikov was aware of the then-imminent 
decision to upgrade Russian-Vatican relations, he dismissed that 
possibility.  Sadchidov said there are no plans in Moscow for 
the meeting the Vatican has pursued actively for years: one 
between the Pope and the Russian Orthodox Patriarch.  Such a 
meeting "is not a priority now," according to Sadchikov, but the 
Russian government would be open to a meeting between Kirill and 
Benedict later (though not in Moscow). (Note: Vatican officials 
have privately dismissed unsolicited offers by President 
Lukashenka of Belarus to "mediate" a meeting with the Russian 
Patriarch (ref. B), as have Russian-Orthodox representatives. 
End note.) 
 
 
 
¶7. (C)  Indeed, Sadchikov confessed, he himself had 
intentionally maintained a low profile at the Vatican at the 
request of the now-deceased Patriarch Alexy II.  (Note: The 
former Patriarch, Alexy II , was unwilling to meet the Pope and 
was not a supporter of ecumenical dialogue.  End Note) 
Sadchikov described his job as "doing basically nothing," citing 
the extremely small amount of Catholics in Russia and Orthodox 
suspicions about Catholic proselytizing there.  Sadchikov also 
disparaged the sole Catholic charity in Russia, essentially 
accusing it of being a front for government corruption.  He said 
the tiny organization receives 100,000 euro per year from the 
Russian government for "operating costs." 
 
 
 
COMMENT: WHY NOW? 
 
----------------- 
 
 
 
¶8.  (C) Comment:  The decision to upgrade diplomatic relations 
appears to have had very different motivations on each side.  If 
-- like Gorbachev twenty years earlier -- Medvedev is looking at 
using organized religion to help Russia confront its many social 
problems, the Pope will not let this opportunity pass him by. 
Warmer Roman Catholic-Russian Orthodox dialogue allows the 
Vatican and Russia to establish full diplomatic relations 
without offending Russian Orthodox sensitivities or interfering 
with promoting unity among all Christians -- one of the 
Vatican's highest goals.  In this new context, full diplomatic 
relations with Russia are a no-brainer for the Vatican. 
 
 
 
¶9. (C) The Russians -- or in this case, the Russian -- may have 
reached the decision to upgrade relations for a different 
reason.  According to knowledgeable observers (a Polish diplomat 
and a priest who has served in the Pontifical Council for 
Christian Unity for years), Medvedev's decision had little to do 
with Russian-Vatican relations and almost everything to do with 
internal Russian politics.  The Russian President (and his wife, 
who came to Rome earlier this year to inaugurate a new Russian 
Orthodox cathedral) wants to distance himself in the view of 
Russian voters from the traditional Soviet atheism of his former 
mentor, Putin.  This is particularly true now that both men may 
be competing for the Russian Presidency in 2012.  At the same 
time, the move to upgrade relations with the Vatican shows 
Medvedev to be a more "Westernized" and modern leader outside 
Russia, boosting his international credibility with little cost 
domestically. 
 
 
 
¶10. (C) Whatever the motives for the upgraded relations, the 
reality on the ground in Rome (and probably Russia) is unlikely 
to change much.  Both states already had full missions in each 
other's capitals that basically operated like full embassies. 
The lack of a formal embassy or nunciature clearly did not make 
it impossible for Russian secular leaders to see the Pope, or 
vice versa.  While it is possible that the semantic change in 
relations could eventually ease a meeting between a Pope and a 
Russian Patriarch, such a meeting is is unlikely to occur in the 
near future.   End Comment. 
 
 
 
¶11.  (C) Bio Note:  Ambassador Sadchikov has served for 40 years 
in Russia's diplomatic corps, and was previously the USSR's 
 
VATICAN 00000126  003.2 OF 003 
 
 
Counsel General to the UN.  He also served as Russia's 
Ambassador to Sweden. During prior contacts with Embassy 
officials, the Ambassador has been circumspect about his 
personal views.  It may be that he opened up in his meeting with 
Ambassador Diaz as a result of increased fatalism due to his 
treatment for advanced cancer.  If his health deteriorates 
further, he may need to be replaced as Ambassador.  End Bio Note 
and Comment. 
DIAZ