US Secretary of State Marco Rubio embarked on a fence-mending visit to the Vatican on Thursday, aiming to underscore robust bilateral ties following President Donald Trump’s recent broadsides against Pope Leo XIV.
The Pope’s opposition to the Iran war had angered the Holy See and fueled ongoing sparring between the two leaders.
During his visit, Rubio, a practicing Catholic, held an audience with Pope Leo XIV, a meeting complicated at the last minute by President Trump’s latest criticisms of the Chicago-born pontiff.
The US State Department confirmed that discussions with Pope Leo and the Vatican’s top diplomat covered peace in the Middle East and "underscored the strong relationship between the United States and the Holy See," reflecting an "enduring partnership."
Rubio then met with Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican secretary of state, who had strongly defended Pope Leo and criticized President Trump’s attacks in understated diplomatic terms just the day before.
"Attacking him like that or criticizing what he does seems a bit strange to me, to say the least," Parolin stated on Wednesday. Following these meetings, the State Department reported that Rubio and Parolin discussed "ongoing humanitarian efforts in the Western Hemisphere and efforts to achieve a durable peace in the Middle East," emphasizing the "enduring partnership between the United States and the Holy See in advancing religious freedom."
The tensions between President Trump and Pope Leo XIV began last month when President Trump lashed out on social media, accusing the Pope of being soft on crime and terrorism due to his comments on the administration’s immigration policies and the Iran war.
Pope Leo responded by stating that God does not listen to the prayers of those who wage war. President Trump later posted a social media image appearing to liken himself to Jesus Christ, which was subsequently deleted after a backlash. He has since refused to apologize, explaining the post as a representation of himself as a doctor.
Pope Leo has consistently pushed back against President Trump’s misrepresentations of his views on Iran and nuclear weapons, insisting he is merely preaching the biblical message of peace. "The mission of the church is to preach the Gospel, to preach peace. If someone wants to criticize me for announcing the Gospel, let him do it with the truth," Pope Leo said late Tuesday, after President Trump again accused him of being "OK" with Iran having a nuclear weapon.
Rubio insisted this week that the visit had been in the works for a while, but acknowledged that "obviously we had some stuff that happened." He explained President Trump’s recent criticisms were rooted in his opposition to Iran potentially obtaining a nuclear weapon, which he said could be used against millions of Catholics and other Christians. Pope Leo has never advocated for Iran to obtain nuclear weapons, noting that the Catholic Church "for years has spoken out against all nuclear weapons, so there is no doubt there."
By Thursday, tensions appeared to have eased somewhat. In an exchange of gifts, Rubio presented Pope Leo with a small crystal football paperweight, acknowledging the Pope’s allegiance to the Chicago White Sox. "What to get someone who has everything?" Rubio joked. Pope Leo, in turn, gave Rubio a pen made of olive wood – "olive being of course the plant of peace," he noted – bearing his coat of arms, along with a picture book of Vatican artworks.
Rubio has frequently been tasked with toning down or explaining President Trump’s harsh rhetoric. President Trump has also criticized Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni and Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, as well as other NATO allies, for a perceived lack of support for the Iran war. Rubio is scheduled to meet with Meloni and Tajani on Friday, meetings that may prove challenging given their strong defense of Pope Leo and criticism of the Iran war as illegal.
Giampiero Gramaglia, former head of the ANSA news agency, suggested that Rubio’s visit might be more about his own political ambitions, particularly with upcoming midterm US congressional elections and the 2028 presidential race in mind. "I doubt Rubio has the role of conciliator for Trump," Gramaglia told Italy's Foreign Press Association. "I have the perception that Rubio’s mission is more about himself." The Rev. Antonio Spadaro, undersecretary in the Vatican’s culture office, echoed this, stating that Washington "has come to acknowledge — implicitly but legibly — that (Leo’s) voice carries weight in the world that cannot simply be dismissed."
Beyond the immediate tensions, Cuba was also on the agenda for the Vatican visit. The Holy See is particularly concerned about the Trump administration’s threats of potential military action there following the January ouster of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. President Trump has frequently suggested Cuba could be "next," even hinting that naval assets deployed in the Middle East could return to the United States via Cuba. Rubio, the son of Cuban immigrants and a longtime Cuba hawk, noted, "We gave Cuba \$6 million of humanitarian aid, but obviously they won’t let us distribute it. We distributed it through the church. We’d like to do more." The Vatican did not immediately comment on the audiences.
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