On June 21, Pope Francis appointed Archbishop Ettore Balestrero as the Holy See's new Permanent Observer to the World Trade Organization (WTO) and the Office of the United Nations and Specialized Agencies in Geneva. Additionally, the Archbishop will represent the Holy See at the International Organization for Migration (IOM).

The titular archbishop of Vittoriana, Archbishop Balestrero, is a long-time diplomat and native of Genoa in northern Italy. He previously held the position of Apostolic Nuncio in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

The prelate traveled with Pope Francis on his apostolic mission to Central Africa from January 31 to February 5 in this role. After serving as the Apostolic Nunciature's leader in Colombia for around five years (2013 to 2018), during which time he backed the government's commitment to establishing peace with the FARC rebel movement agreed upon in 2016, he arrived in Kinshasa in July 2018. He accompanied the Pope on his 2017 visit to Latin America in his capacity as Nuncio.

Monsignor Balestrero joined the Holy See's diplomatic service in 1996 and has served in the Netherlands, Korea, and Mongolia. He worked at the Secretariat of State from 2001 until his appointment by Pope Benedict XVI as Undersecretary for Relations with States on August 17, 2009. He worked there from 2009 till 2013.