The Vatican has emphasised the need to work tirelessly for peace during talks with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who met Pope Leo on Thursday amid unprecedented tensions between Washington and the Holy See. The meeting at the Apostolic Palace came after repeated verbal attacks by Donald Trump on the pope, including accusations of supporting nuclear weapons and opposing the Iran war.
Vatican video showed Pope Leo, the first North American pontiff, greeting Rubio formally as “Mr Secretary”. Rubio, a Catholic, presented the pope with a small crystal American football, joking that Leo, a Chicago native and White Sox fan, was more of a “baseball guy”. The 45-minute audience was followed by meetings with Vatican Secretary of State Pietro Parolin, who had earlier defended Leo and criticised Trump’s attacks as “rather strange”.
A Vatican statement said the two sides exchanged views on current events, focusing on countries affected by war, political tensions, and humanitarian crises, and underlined the need to work tirelessly for peace. A US official described the conversations as “friendly and constructive”, while a State Department spokesperson said the meeting underscored the strong relationship and shared commitment to promoting peace and human dignity.
Trump’s recent attacks on Leo have strained relations, with the president accusing the pope of endangering Catholics and being weak on crime. Leo responded by urging critics to speak truthfully, noting the church’s longstanding opposition to nuclear weapons. Parolin, when asked if he trusted Trump or Rubio more, replied: “I count on no one. I count only on our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Rubio is also scheduled to meet Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni on Friday, as relations between Rome and Washington have deteriorated. Political historian Lorenzo Castellani noted that Trump’s attacks on the pope have forced Meloni to distance herself from the US president, despite earlier praising him as a potential Nobel peace prize winner.
