Rubio visited the Vatican on Thursday amid tensions between Pope Leo XIV and President Donald Trump over immigration and Middle East policy.
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U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio met with Pope Leo XIV at the Vatican on Thursday, a visit that took place amid public criticism from President Donald Trump directed at the pontiff.
Rubio spent two and a half hours at the Holy See before departing in a convoy under strict security measures through Rome's main avenues. Following the meeting, Rubio posted on social media: "I met with the Pope to underscore our shared commitment to promote peace and human dignity."
State Department spokesman Tommy Pigott said that Rubio and the Pope discussed the situation in the Middle East and "matters of mutual interest in the Western Hemisphere." Pigott added that Rubio "underscored the strong relationship" between the United States and the Vatican, as well as "their shared commitment to promote peace and human dignity."
The meeting occurred against a backdrop of tensions between Trump and Pope Leo XIV. Trump has accused the Pope of being lenient toward crime and terrorism, citing the pontiff's comments on U.S. immigration and deportation policies, as well as his criticism of war with Iran.
Rubio, a Catholic, was received at the Vatican as the chief diplomat of the White House. The visit represented an effort to emphasize the bilateral relationship between the United States and the Vatican during a period of public disagreement between the American president and the head of the Catholic Church.
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