James O'Reilly
This is how Marco Rubio, the United States Secretary of State, arrived at the Vatican to meet with Pope Leo XIV. He was first welcomed by the new Prefect of the Papal Household.
This visit comes after several weeks of tension between Trump and the American pope over the Iran war. The much-needed meeting between Washington and the Vatican has finally taken place.
NATS
– Secretary
Great to see you
–.Good morning
It's almost a year that i was with you
One day... Ah, no... Ten days off...
Pope Leo was referring to his first meeting with Rubio, who had accompanied JD Vance for a visit to the Vatican on May 19, 2025, one day after the official start of Leo XIV’s papacy.
Rubio and the pope met for about 45 minutes. As the former had indicated in advance, he wanted to speak with Pope Leo about religious freedom and the situation in Cuba.
This meeting was followed by another between Rubio and Cardinal Pietro Parolin, who is effectively his counterpart at the Vatican. It was likely with Parolin that Rubio addressed the most delicate part of his visit—calming tensions between the US administration and the Holy See after Trump’s attacks on Leo XIV.
