Rubio Heads to Vatican Amid Trump-Pope War of Words... Focus on Improving Ties

Scheduled to Meet With Vatican Secretary of State and Italian Foreign Minister

Marco Rubio, U.S. Secretary of State

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio will make a surprise visit to Rome and the Vatican in Italy this week.

According to foreign media outlets, including AFP, citing sources in the Italian government on May 3 (local time), Secretary Rubio is scheduled to visit Rome and the Vatican for two days on May 7 and 8.

During this visit, Secretary Rubio is expected to hold successive meetings with Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican's Secretary of State and the second-highest authority in the Holy See, as well as Antonio Tajani, Italy's Minister of Foreign Affairs, and Guido Crosetto, Italy's Minister of Defense.

Local media have analyzed Secretary Rubio's visit as a 'thaw meeting' aimed at easing the strained relations between the two countries and with the Holy See. Previously, President Donald Trump clashed with Pope Leo XIV, who had criticized the Iran war. Pope Leo XIV, the first American pope, has criticized the Trump Administration's immigration policies since his enthronement in May last year, and after the outbreak of war at the end of February, has issued strong anti-war messages. In response, President Trump criticized the pope, stating that he is "terrible at foreign policy."

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni was previously considered the European leader closest to President Trump, but has faced tensions with him since the Iran war. Prime Minister Meloni defined the U.S.-Israeli attacks as a "violation of international law," and President Trump also took aim at Prime Minister Meloni, saying, "She does not want to help us remove nuclear weapons."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.