Antonio Franco (diplomat)

Antonio Franco (born Puglianello, Italy, March 24, 1937) is a Vatican diplomat.

He was ordained a Priest of Telese o Cerreto Sannita, Italy on July 10, 1960 and appointed Titular Archbishop of Gallesium on March 28, 1992. He served as Apostolic Nuncio to Ukraine between 1992 and 1999, and to the Philippines between 1999 and 2006.

In 2006, he was appointed Apostolic Nuncio to Israel and Cyprus as well as Apostolic Delegate to Jerusalem and Palestine, where he presently serves.

In 2007, a dispute arose as the Vatican protested the inscription under Pius XII photograph in Yad Vashem, alleging the Pontiff did not act to save Jews during the war. Franco even threatened to boycott the Holocaust Memorial Ceremony as a result [1].