Cardinal Secretary of State

Secretary of State of His Holiness Segretario di Stato di Sua Santità
Coat of arms of the Holy See
Incumbent Pietro Parolin since 15 October 2013
Secretariat of State
Style	His Eminence
Type	Head of government
Member of	Roman Curia Council of Cardinals
Reports to	The Pope
Appointer	The Pope
Term length	Appointment of a new Pope
Formation	20 November 1551
First holder	Girolamo Dandini
Unofficial names	Cardinal Secretary of State

The Secretary of State of His Holiness (Italian: Segretario di Stato di Sua Santità), commonly known as the Cardinal Secretary of State, is in charge over the Holy See's Secretariat of State, which is the oldest and most important dicastery of the Roman Curia.^[1] The Secretariat of State is seen as the prime minister of the Holy See.^[2]

The Secretary of State is currently Cardinal Pietro Parolin.^[3]

1. ↑ "Profile: The Secretariat of State". The Holy See. Archived from the original on 2 May 2012. Retrieved 18 April 2007.
2. ↑ "The Vatican's secretary of state visits Moscow for the first time in 19 years". The Economist. 25 August 2017. Archived from the original on 25 August 2017. Retrieved 26 August 2017.
3. ↑ "DICHIARAZIONE DI S.E. MONS. PIETRO PAROLIN IN OCCASIONE DELLA SUA NOMINA A SEGRETARIO DI STATO" [DECLARATION OF H.E. Mgr. PIETRO PAROLIN ON THE OCCASION OF HIS APPOINTMENT AS SECRETARY OF STATE]. Archived from the original on 22 September 2013. Retrieved 28 October 2013.