On January 8 Pope Francis delivered his annual address to the diplomatic corps accredited to the Vatican, in what’s generally considered his most important foreign policy speech of the year. It was a typically wide-ranging overview of the global scene, from nuclear disarmament and the dangers of anti-immigrant rhetoric to the pro-life cause and “ideolo-gical colonization.” Crux spoke with Ambassador Barry Desker of Singapore, who was part of the first generation of diplomats from his country after it gained independence from Malaysia in 1965, and who today serves as one of the “non-residential” ambassadors to the Vatican, meaning he does not live full-time in Rome. He said: “The second factor which will have drawn attention is the reference to a “demographic winter,” meaning the decline in birthrates. In Asia, this is something that’s of concern to countries around the region, including Singapore. For example, many have said that China is likely to grow old before it grows rich because of the one-child policy.”
Spanish bishops speak out after leaks of their meeting with Leo XIV
The executive committee of the Spanish Bishops’ Conference, (CEE, by its Spanish acronym) meeting in Madrid this week, issued an official statement regarding the leaks
