The Vatican, a dwindling reference on the international stage

Iósif Stalin was obviously mistaken when he despised the Vatican for not having any armored division, believing that power was measured only in terms of the relationship of military forces. The minimum that must be granted to an institution that has been able to remain alive for two millennia is the recognition of its operational capacity not only to accommodate the vagaries of history, but in many cases to determine it. Hence, every time a vaca…