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World leaders sent condolences to the Vatican following the death of Pope Francis, including German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, who expressed his sympathies in a formal message commonly referred to as a telegram.<\/p>\n
A government spokesperson clarified the message followed a longstanding diplomatic tradition where Germany sends official condolences or congratulations via “telegram.”<\/p>\n
The spokesperson clarified that while the terminology harked back to a different era, such messages were now typically sent via email through the Foreign Office and relevant embassies, with a printed copy usually following by post.<\/p>\n
Scholz also paid public tribute to Pope Francis on the social media platform X, separate from the formal diplomatic communication.<\/p>\n
Telegram services still operate in parts of the world, although the number of telegrams sent each year has declined rapidly since the 1980s.<\/p>\n
The German postal service stopped offering telegram services in 2022, bringing an end to what was once the world’s fastest form of communication for urgent political and military messages.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n