Rubio set to travel to Rome for meetings with Pope Leo XIV and Italian foreign minister
OAN Staff Lillian Mann and Brooke Mallory
4:15 PM – Monday, May 4, 2026
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio is scheduled to arrive in Rome this week for a diplomatic mission centered on a private audience with Pope Leo XIV at the Apostolic Palace this Thursday.
The Holy See’s press office confirmed the meeting on Monday, noting that the discussion arrives during a period of friction between the Trump administration and the Vatican. Tensions have also intensified as the Chicago-born pontiff has moved from subtle diplomacy to increasingly vocal criticism of the administration’s handling of the conflict in Iran.
Beyond the papal briefing, Rubio — whose own Catholic faith has often positioned him as a primary liaison to the Holy See — is expected to engage in a series of meetings to stabilize regional relations.
According to Italian officials, Rubio will meet with Vatican Secretary of State Pietro Parolin to discuss humanitarian concerns before shifting to more secular matters with Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani.
While a meeting with Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni remains a high priority for the delegation to address shared security interests and recent diplomatic disagreements, her office has described the potential sit-down as subject to final scheduling.
The U.S. State Department confirmed on Monday morning that the upcoming meeting with the foreign minister will center on the current regional instability in the Middle East alongside shared strategic interests within the Western Hemisphere.
This diplomatic engagement follows a period of heightened tension between Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and President Donald Trump that surfaced last month. The friction originated after Meloni publicly critiqued U.S. military operations in Iran and issued a sharp condemnation of Trump’s remarks concerning the Pope, prompted by a series of critical exchanges between the two leaders.
“I thought [Meloni] had courage, but I was wrong,” Trump told the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera at the time.
On Thursday, Trump threatened to withdraw troops from Italy and Spain after both countries denied the use of their bases to the U.S. for military operations in Iran.
On Palm Sunday, Pope Leo claimed that God does not listen to the prayers of those who “wage war,” while later clarifying to reporters that he harbors no personal fear of the Trump administration. While these comments suggest a direct challenge to U.S. foreign policy, the Pope has maintained that the rift between himself and Trump is not as severe as it appears.
He has pushed back against the narrative of a deepening conflict, claiming instead that their public disputes have been significantly blown out of proportion.
“Much of what has been written since then has been more commentary on commentary, trying to interpret what has been said,” Leo stated in April. “It was looked at as if I was trying to debate, again, the president, which is not my interest at all.”
Additionally, in a recent escalation of rhetoric, Trump utilized Truth Social to challenge Pope Leo, disparaging him as being “WEAK on crime” and “terrible for Foreign Policy.” The post effectively ignited a series of intense public debates regarding the intersection of politics and ecclesiastical authority, forcing many to choose sides in an uncommonly public ideological divide.
“He wasn’t on any list to be Pope, and was only put there by the Church because he was an American, and they thought that would be the best way to deal with President Donald Trump,” Trump wrote online. “If I wasn’t in the White House, Leo wouldn’t be in the Vatican.”
Vice President JD Vance similarly leveled criticism against the Pope as well, suggesting that the Vatican should confine its influence to matters of morality rather than geopolitical affairs. Vance, a Catholic himself, further cautioned that Leo should be more careful when addressing the complex intersections of theology and warfare.
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