He entered the diplomatic service of the
Holy See on 13 June 1987 and then worked in several countries before returning to the offices of the Secretariat of State in Rome. On 16 January 2007, Boccardi was named
titular archbishop of
Bitettum and Apostolic Nuncio to Sudan. On 30 January he was named Nuncio to Eritrea as well. He received his episcopal consecration on 18 March 2007 from Cardinal
Tarcisio Bertone. On 11 July 2013, Boccardi was appointed Nuncio to Iran. Following the death of Qassem Soleimani in the
2020 Baghdad International Airport airstrike, Boccardi called for tensions to be lowered through negotiations. He said that all parties need "to believe in dialogue, knowing from what history has always taught, that war and weapons" do not resolve the problems afflicting the world. “We must believe in negotiation". On 11 March 2021,
Pope Francis appointed him
Apostolic Nuncio to Japan. He retired on 1 September 2023. ==See also==