BEIJING (Reuters) – China and the Vatican have agreed to extend an agreement on the appointment of bishops in China for a longer period of four years, a Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson said on Tuesday.
The two sides will continue to hold talks in a constructive manner and advance the improvement of relations, Lin Jian told a regular press briefing.
There was no immediate confirmation from the Vatican.
The Vatican struck a landmark deal with the Beijing government in 2018 over the appointment of Catholic bishops in the country.
The agreement, which was previously renewed every two years, gives Chinese officials some input into who Pope Francis appoints as bishops in the country, and seeks to ease tensions in China between an underground Catholic flock loyal to the pope and the state-backed Catholic church.
Speaking last month on the flight back to Rome from Singapore at the end of a tour of Southeast Asia and Oceania, Francis said the results of the 2018 deal “are good”.
“I am happy with the dialogue with China,” the 87-year-old pontiff said. “We are working with good will.”
(Reporting by Liz Lee and Joshua McElwee; Writing by Joe Cash and Keith Weir; Editing by Christopher Cushing and Alvise Armellini)