The announcement on Feb 23 did not come as a surprise because in November, during Pope Francis' trip to Bahrain, there had been contact between the Vatican and Oman's Foreign Ministry.

The agreement was signed on behalf of the Holy See by Archbishop Gabriele Caccia, Holy See Permanent Observer to the United Nations in New York, and for the Sultanate of Oman by H.E. Dr Mohammed Al-Hassan, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Sultanate of Oman to the United Nations.

The signing ceremony was held at the Permanent Mission of the Sultanate of Oman to the United Nations in New York City.

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In a statement Oct. 6, Archbishop Gabriele Caccia, Permanent Observer of the Holy See to the United Nations, said that the reinterpretation of human rights benefited the powerful at the expense of the weak.

"The Holy See is deeply concerned over growing pressure to reinterpret the very foundations of human rights and to compromise their inner unity so as to move away from the protection of human dignity and to satisfy political and economic interests," Caccia said during the 75th session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York. Read more