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Wiki says holy see signed but didn't ratify. Don't know what that means tho.

• Someone 10y ago
  Short version as I see it: many countries require their parliaments to decide on entering a treaty, but they may want to indicate their intent to enter earlier, for example during an official signing session. The UN has the official explanation, though. http://ask.un.org/faq/14594 http://ask.un.org/faq/14594: "Signature Subject to Ratification, Acceptance or Approval Where the signature is subject to ratification, acceptance or approval, the signature does not establish the consent to be bound. However, it is a means of authentication and expresses the willingness of the signatory state to continue the treaty-making process. The signature qualifies the signatory state to proceed to ratification, acceptance or approval. It also creates an obligation to refrain, in good faith, from acts that would defeat the object and the purpose of the treaty. [Arts.10 and 18, Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties 1969] Ratification Ratification defines the international act whereby a state indicates its consent to be bound to a treaty if the parties intended to show their consent by such an act. In the case of bilateral treaties, ratification is usually accomplished by exchanging the requisite instruments, while in the case of multilateral treaties the usual procedure is for the depositary to collect the ratifications of all states, keeping all parties informed of the situation. The institution of ratification grants states the necessary time-frame to seek the required approval for the treaty on the domestic level and to enact the necessary legislation to give domestic effect to that treaty." There also is such a thing as "Signature ad Referendum"