Rubio meets Pope Leo XIV at Vatican amid tensions

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio arrived in Rome on Thursday for a series of high-level diplomatic engagements, including a private audience with Pope Leo XIV at the Apostolic Palace. Landing at Ciampino Airport under tight security, Rubio was accompanied by US Ambassador to the Holy See Brian Burch and received by Monsignor Petar Rajic, prefect of the Papal Household, before entering the palace for the 30-minute closed-door encounter.

Tensions between Washington and the Vatican

The visit comes just days after President Donald Trump publicly criticised the pope, claiming in an interview with radio host Hugh Hewitt that the pontiff is “endangering a lot of Catholics” and “thinks it’s fine for Iran to have a nuclear weapon.” Those remarks marked a sharp escalation in friction between the White House and the Holy See, following earlier papal criticism of the US-Israeli war on Iran. Rubio, a Catholic who received his first communion in 1984, is expected to navigate these sensitive waters during his talks.

Broader diplomatic schedule

Following his meeting with the pope, Rubio held discussions with Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican’s Secretary of State. On Friday, he is scheduled to meet Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni at Palazzo Chigi. Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk was also at the Vatican earlier Thursday morning, meeting the pontiff shortly before Rubio’s arrival. The back-to-back visits underscore the Vatican’s active role in international security and geopolitical mediation.