Foreign Policy Elites: Individuals Who Matter 191For CritiCal analy sis- Using Hermann’s personality characteristics,
how would you describe Pope Francis? - Has Pope Francis been successful in
influencing policy because of his individual
personality and biography, or the fact that
he speaks for the Catholic Church? How
would a realist argue for one or the other?
up from secret negotiations between U.S. and
Cuban officials a year earlier in Canada. The
timing was fortuitous— there were short- term
pressures of the health of prisoners to be
exchanged and there were long- term trends
acknowledged, that the opposition of the gen-
eration of Cuban- Americans opposing any rec-
onciliation until the end of communism was
softening. The leaders of both countries
acknowledged the personal role that the Pope
played in the reconciliation pro cess.
At the end, the Pope speaks as pope of the
Catholic church worldwide with its 1.1 billion
members and as sovereign of the Vatican City,
the smallest internationally recognized in de-
pen dent state. His preferences are having a
Pope Francis addressed poverty and climate change during his speech at the White House in September 2015
as part of his triumphant visit to the United States.strong impact on Catholic Church policy and
being used to pressure states to fashion policy
based on ethical considerations.