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New U.S. ambassador bullish on U.S.-Vatican relations
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ROME (CNS) -- Vatican Ambassador Francis Rooney is bullish on U.S.-Vatican relations. After presenting his credentials to Pope Benedict XVI Nov. 12, the new U.S. representative said he was convinced that the United States and the Vatican are natural allies on a host of modern issues. On questions like terrorism and human trafficking, on foreign assistance and AIDS treatment, the Vatican and the U.S. government are on the same page, Rooney told Catholic News Service in an interview Nov. 14. Even the war in Iraq, which was strongly opposed by the Vatican, has moved into the category of shared objectives, the ambassador said. "We're in a new day here, with the Vatican and the United States supporting each other as we work together to support the people of Iraq," he said. When it comes to nation-building in Iraq, he said, "the Holy See is there to lend its voice of support, in developing a free, particularly religiously free, country that is based upon freedom and democratic principles."
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