CSDC 435

The Magisterium recognizes the importance of national sovereignty, understood above all as an expression of the freedom that must govern relations between States.⁸⁸⁹ Cf. John XXIII, Encyclical Letter Pacem in Terris: AAS 55AAS — Acta Apostolicae Sedis (official gazette of the Holy See)Volume 55 (1963) at vatican.va — scanned PDF (1963), 289-290; John Paul II, Address to the Fiftieth General Assembly of the United Nations(5 October 1995), 15: L'Osservatore Romano, English edition, 11 October 1995, p. 10. Sovereignty represents the subjectivity ⁸⁹⁰ Cf. John Paul II, Encyclical Letter Sollicitudo Rei Socialis, 15: AAS 80AAS — Acta Apostolicae Sedis (official gazette of the Holy See)Volume 80 (1988) at vatican.va — scanned PDF (1988), 528-530. of a nation, in the political, economic, social and even cultural sense. The cultural dimension takes on particular importance as a source of strength in resisting acts of aggression or forms of domination that have repercussions on a country's freedom. Culture constitutes the guarantee for the preservation of the identity of a people and expresses and promotes its spiritual sovereignty.⁸⁹¹ Cf. John Paul II, Address to UNESCO (2 June 1980), 14: L'Osservatore Romano, English edition, 23 June 1980, p. 11. National sovereignty is not, however, absolute. Nations can freely renounce the exercise of some of their rights in view of a common goal, in the awareness that they form a “family of nations” ⁸⁹² John Paul II, Address to the Fiftieth General Assembly of the United Nations (5 October 1995), 14: L'Osservatore Romano, English edition, 11 October 1995, p. 10; cf. also John Paul II, Address to the Diplomatic Corps (13 January 2001), 8: L'Osservatore Romano, English edition, 17 January 2001, p. 2. where mutual trust, support and respect must prevail. In this perspective, special attention should be given to the fact that there is still no international agreement that adequately addresses “the rights of nations”,⁸⁹³ John Paul II, Address to the Fiftieth General Assembly of the United Nations (5 October 1995), 6: L'Osservatore Romano, English edition, 11 October 1995, p. 8. the preparation of which could profitably deal with questions concerning justice and freedom in today's world.