Democratic Republic of the Congo–Holy See relations election. Democratic Republic of the Congo–Holy See relations Democratic Republic of the Congo–Holy See relations refers to the current relationship between the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Holy See. The two states have seen an increase in their cooperation in recent years, and due to the large number of Roman Catholics in the DRC, President Joseph Kabila has made an effort to maintain good relations with the Vatican. The DRC maintains an embassy near Vatican City while the Holy See has an apostolic nunciature in Kinshasa. The current Congolese ambassador in the Vatican is Jean-Pierre Hamuli Mupenda (since
Holy See–Israel relations Basic Agreement between the Holy See and the PLO from 15 February 2000. Since its establishment, Israel has exerted its sovereignty over all holy sites within Israel, a new situation that Catholicism has had to contend with since 1948. For decades, the Vatican resented Israel's claims to effective authority by denying it diplomatic relations. Even following the formalization of diplomatic relations in 1994, the Vatican continued to contest Israel's sovereignty over Jerusalem. The Holy See traditionally seeks to safeguard also the Catholic presence in Jerusalem. During the war in 1948, not only Muslims but also Christians were among the population