U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who arrived in Rome for a two-day trip, met and held talks with Pope Leo XIV, the leader of the world’s Catholics, at the Vatican at the start of his visit.
The White House described the meeting, which took place after weeks of tension between Washington and the Vatican, as “friendly and constructive.”
The Vatican also stated in a release that Pope Leo XIV and Marco Rubio emphasized a “shared commitment to maintaining good bilateral relations between the U.S. and the Vatican.”
The U.S. Secretary of State’s visit to the Vatican took place amid disagreements in recent weeks between U.S. President Donald Trump and Pope Leo XIV regarding issues such as war and U.S. immigration policies.
Pope Leo XIV is the first American to hold the position of head of the Catholic Church.
In recent weeks, Donald Trump had criticized the Pope, and in turn, the Pope had reacted to some positions of the U.S. president, including his statements regarding a war against Iran.
One of the verbal tensions between the two escalated after Trump stated that if nuclear negotiations with Tehran failed and tensions arose over the Strait of Hormuz, the U.S. might “destroy Iranian civilization.”
Pope Leo XIV called these remarks “completely unacceptable” and urged Catholics to encourage political leaders to “work for peace.”
Agence France-Presse, citing a U.S. official, reported that the meeting between the U.S. Secretary of State and the leader of the world’s Catholics took place in a “friendly and constructive” atmosphere.
The U.S. State Department also announced on Thursday that the talks between Marco Rubio and Pope Leo XIV were conducted with an emphasis on the “strong relations” between the two sides.
Writer:Salima Aryaei
