Rubio meets Pope Leo as US-Vatican tensions spill into diplomacy

Marco Rubio has arrived at the Vatican for a closed-door meeting with Pope Leo XIV, in what looks like a careful attempt to stabilise relations after weeks of friction between the White House and the Holy See.

The meeting, scheduled for Thursday and expected to last about half an hour, is the first known encounter between the pope and a Trump administration official in nearly a year. Rubio is also set to hold talks with Pietro Parolin, underscoring that the visit is as much diplomatic as it is symbolic.

According to Parolin, the initiative came from Washington, with the Vatican signalling a willingness to engage.

“I imagine they’ll talk about everything ⁠that has happened in recent days,” he said, as quoted by Reuters.

Those “recent days” have been unusually tense. Relations between Donald Trump and Pope Leo have deteriorated sharply, driven largely by Trump’s public criticism of the pontiff’s stance on the US-Israel war on Iran. The latest flashpoint came earlier this week, when Trump accused the pope of “endangering a lot of Catholics” and suggested he was too permissive on Iran’s nuclear ambitions.

The Vatican has pushed back on that framing. Pope Leo has denied supporting nuclear weapons and reiterated the Church’s long-standing position. “The mission of the Church is to preach the Gospel, to preach peace,” he said. “The Church has spoken out for years against all nuclear arms – on that there is no doubt.”

Ahead of the meeting, expectations on both sides appear measured. US ambassador to the Holy See Brian Burch said the conversation was likely to be “frank”, suggesting neither side expects an easy alignment.

Parolin, for his part, described Trump’s recent comments as “strange”, while avoiding direct criticism. “I wouldn’t want to get into judgements or personal evaluations about this,” he said in remarks reported by Reuters.

Rubio’s visit extends beyond the Vatican. He is also scheduled to meet Giorgia Meloni, who has publicly defended the pope, adding another layer to the diplomatic balancing act.

The backdrop is a pope who has taken a more assertive tone on global issues in recent weeks, including criticism of war and calls for multilateral dialogue. That posture has increasingly put him at odds with Washington’s messaging, particularly on Iran.