US Embassy Denies Claims of ‘Special Award’ from Pope to Iran’s Ambassador
After Iranian state media reported that the Pope had granted a “special and exclusive award” to the Islamic Republic’s ambassador to the Vatican, the United States Embassy to the Holy See rejected this narrative and deemed it misleading. According to American officials, the award presented is part of standard diplomatic protocol at the Vatican that is given to all ambassadors after several years of service, and contains no political message or special endorsement of Iran.
The matter began when some official Iranian media outlets reported that Mohammad Hossein Mokhtar, the Islamic Republic of Iran’s ambassador to the Vatican, had received one of the highest diplomatic honors of the Vatican from Pope Leo XIV, a report that gained widespread coverage in social media and international outlets and was cited as a sign of closeness between the Vatican and Tehran.
However, the US Embassy to the Vatican, by releasing a statement on social networks, rejected this narrative and announced: “Contrary to media reports, Pope Leo has not conferred a special and exclusive honor on Iran’s ambassador to the Vatican.”
The embassy explained that the award in question, according to an ancient diplomatic tradition, is conferred upon all official Vatican ambassadors who have served in their posts for more than two years and has been implemented as a routine procedure for years. American officials also emphasized: “This award does not signify support for or opposition to the policies of any particular country.”
According to reports from Vatican media, the award was presented to 13 ambassadors in a joint ceremony and was not exclusive to the representative of the Islamic Republic. Additionally, contrary to some published accounts, the medal was not directly presented by the Pope, and the ceremony was conducted by officials of the Vatican Secretariat of State.
Nevertheless, media outlets close to the Iranian government described this event as a significant diplomatic success and claimed it recognized the activities of Iran’s embassy in the areas of “interfaith dialogue,” “peace,” and “peaceful coexistence.” Some Iranian media even linked this award to the Pope’s recent positions regarding regional tensions and war.
The publication of this report sparked various reactions on social networks. Some users and political activists criticized the awarding of such a medal to the Islamic Republic’s representative even within the framework of routine diplomatic protocol, viewing it as disregard for the human rights situation in Iran. In response, Vatican officials and the US Embassy have emphasized that this matter was solely part of standard diplomatic procedures at the Vatican and should not be interpreted as a political message.
