Relationship dossier
Vatican City
India
Relationship assessment
India and the Holy See maintain a cooperative relationship marked by papal visits and high-level diplomatic engagement.
Vatican City toward India
+20The Holy See has engaged India through papal visits, including John Paul II’s visits in 1986 and 1999, which involved direct engagement with Indian authorities and communities.
India toward Vatican City
+20Indian leaders have engaged the Holy See at senior level. In 2021, Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Pope Francis and invited him to visit India.
Overall relationship
+20The relationship has included recurring high-level engagement, notably two visits to India by Pope John Paul II and the 2021 meeting between Modi and Pope Francis. These interactions indicate a cooperative diplomatic relationship, while the scale of ongoing practical cooperation is unclear.
How to read these scores
Scores are rough judgments, not objective measurements or current verification. Directional scores describe government policy and conduct, not public opinion. The overall score is an independent estimate, never an average.
- −100
- Extreme sustained hostility
- −50
- Substantially adversarial
- 0
- Mixed or neutral, supported by knowledge
- +50
- Substantially cooperative
- +100
- Exceptionally close sustained partnership
“Not assessed” means there is no recorded score. Pair existence makes no claim about diplomatic recognition or established relations.
Relationship context
Overview
Vatican City’s foreign relations are conducted through the Holy See. Papal visits to India, including visits by John Paul II in 1986 and 1999, and the 2021 meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Pope Francis reflect sustained diplomatic engagement. The relationship has a cooperative profile, though the scope of practical bilateral cooperation is unclear.
Key developments
Pope John Paul II visited India, engaging with Indian authorities and communities.
Pope John Paul II made a second visit to India.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Pope Francis and invited him to visit India.
Major uncertainties
- The scope of practical cooperation through bilateral diplomacy is unclear.
- The extent to which papal visits led to continuing bilateral initiatives is unclear.