Rubio to meet pope as U.S.-Vatican rift widens
Secretary of State Marco Rubio will travel to Rome and Vatican City this week and meet with Pope Leo XIV as tensions between President Donald Trump and the pope continue to rise over U.S. policies, including the Iran war. The State Department said Rubio, a Catholic, will be in Italy on Thursday and Friday, and that Vatican officials have scheduled a meeting with Pope Leo on Thursday.
The State Department said the trip is intended to ease tensions and will include discussions with Holy See leadership “to discuss the situation in the Middle East and mutual interests in the Western Hemisphere.” It said meetings with Italian counterparts would focus on “shared security interests and strategic alignment.”
The Vatican announced that Rubio would meet with Pope Leo XIV on Thursday, positioning the meeting as the centerpiece of the trip during a period of heightened public discord between Trump and the pope. The exchange has drawn scrutiny not only in Washington but also abroad, including in Italy.
MSI previously reported that Trump and Pope Leo XIV had clashed publicly over the pope’s stance on the Middle East and other conflicts, with Trump drawing criticism for posts he made online. In the latest timeline, the dispute has remained closely tied to the Iran war and to the pope’s broader peace message.
Trump has criticized Pope Leo on social media, saying the pope was soft on crime and terrorism for comments about the administration’s immigration policies and deportations as well as the Iran war. Pope Leo then said God doesn’t listen to the prayers of those who wage war, and Trump posted an image likening himself to Jesus Christ. Trump has declined to apologize to the pope and has said he thought the image was of him as a doctor.
The fallout has also reached Italian politics, where Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni—described in the report as a long-time Trump ally—took exception to Trump’s comments about the pope. Trump, in turn, criticized Meloni as his ire toward some NATO allies expands amid the administration’s push on the Iran war.
Rubio has been viewed as a diplomat who often has to tone down or explain Trump’s rhetoric as it relates to Europe, NATO and the Middle East. The report also links the Pope-Trump dispute to domestic U.S. political considerations as midterm congressional elections approach.
Pope Leo XIV—described as the first American pontiff—has said he was not making a direct attack against Trump or anyone else, framing his general appeal for peace and his criticisms of the Iran war and other conflicts as aimed at promoting wider concerns rather than targeting a specific leader.
Rubio has already traveled to Italy twice in his official capacity since last year, the report said. The first trip in May 2025 included Pope Leo’s inaugural mass and a private meeting with the pontiff and Vice President JD Vance. The second, in February, was with Vance when they attended the opening of the Milan Winter Olympics and met with American athletes.
Note on correction
The report said it was corrected to show that Rubio will have visited Italy or the Vatican at least three times when this week’s trip is included.