Relationship dossier
Vatican City
San Marino
Relationship assessment
Cooperative ties shaped by formal church-state arrangements and longstanding religious connections
Vatican City toward San Marino
+35Through the Holy See, Vatican City maintains formal agreements with San Marino on church-state matters. Pope Benedict XVI's visit to San Marino in 2011 was a further concrete expression of these ties.
San Marino toward Vatican City
+35San Marino has entered formal agreements with the Holy See on church-state matters and hosted Pope Benedict XVI in 2011, reflecting substantive engagement with the Vatican's governing institution.
Overall relationship
+40The bilateral relationship is shaped by San Marino's formal arrangements with the Holy See and close religious ties. The 2011 papal visit illustrates sustained engagement, while the extent of cooperation in other government areas is less clear.
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 external relations are conducted through the Holy See, whose ties with San Marino include formal agreements on church-state matters. San Marino hosted Pope Benedict XVI on 19 June 2011. These provide concrete grounds for a cooperative assessment, though the scope of ongoing bilateral cooperation is not fully clear.
Key developments
San Marino and the Holy See concluded an agreement concerning religious instruction in schools.
Pope Benedict XVI visited San Marino.
Major uncertainties
- The scope and current implementation of bilateral agreements on church-state matters are unclear.
- Details of ongoing government cooperation beyond formal religious and diplomatic ties are limited.