Rubio Meets Italian, Vatican Officials in Rome

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio will travel to Rome this week on Thursday and Friday to meet with Vatican and Italian officials amid strained relations following President Donald Trump's criticisms of Pope Leo and threats to withdraw American troops from Italy.

Rubio will meet the Vatican’s secretary of state, Pietro Parolin, on Thursday, according to a foreign ministry source and Corriere della Sera.

He will also meet Antonio Tajani, Italy’s deputy prime minister and foreign minister, on Friday, the same sources stated. Rubio is expected to hold talks with Italy’s foreign and defense ministers, as reported by Italian newspapers. Rubio has asked to meet Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, but the request has not yet been granted, the foreign ministry source added.

A meeting with Meloni has not been ruled out, according to La Repubblica. Rubio’s schedule has not been finalized, Corriere reported. Rubio would meet defence minister Guido Crosetto, Corriere della Sera stated, though an appointment with Crosetto has not yet been officially scheduled, according to the foreign ministry source.

U.S. , especially in relation to maritime security.

U.S. Ambassador to Rome, Tilman Fertitta, as reported by Corriere della Sera. S. and Italy in the weeks since Trump’s remarks against Leo. -Israeli war on Iran, according to Corriere della Sera.

U.S. and Rome broke down following Trump’s remarks against Pope Leo. Trump berated Meloni after she called out his remarks against Leo.

U.S. Troops from Italy, Corriere della Sera reported. S. troops from Italy and Spain a day earlier.

U.S. Troops for NATO in Italy, too. Trump said 'Why shouldn't I? ' He added, 'I didn't need the help, but I said, 'yeah, we'd love to have your help, because I want to see if they'd do it. '' Trump further stated, 'And you know the amazing thing is they use the Strait of Hormuz, and we don't.

We don't use it. We don't need it. S. forces in Europe, with nearly 13,000 active-duty American troops stationed across six bases at the end of 2025. S.

Planes carrying weapons for the war in late March. -Israeli war on Iran from the start. Meloni is one of Trump’s closest European allies. Trump publicly criticized Meloni over her stance on the Iran war and for her defense of the pope.

The Pentagon announced it was withdrawing 5,000 troops from Germany on Friday. S. S.

Was being “humiliated” by Iran. Trump has suggested that the number of troops withdrawn from Germany may increase. A senior Pentagon official said recent German rhetoric had been “inappropriate and unhelpful” and that “the president is rightly reacting to these counterproductive remarks”.

Rubio is expected to meet with Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Reuters reported citing La Repubblica and Corriere della Sera. S. vice-president JD Vance attended Pope Leo’s inauguration in May last year and had a private audience with Pope Leo the day after.

Rubio and Vance attended Pope Leo's inaugural Mass in St. Peter’s Square in May 2025 and held a private meeting with Pope Leo the following day in May 2025. Rubio and Vance handed Pope Leo an invitation from Trump to the White House during the private audience.

U.S. administration.

Pope Leo continued to speak out against the war on Iran and others in response to Trump’s outburst in April. Pope Leo has been critical of the Trump administration's peacemaking efforts in the Middle East. Trump attacked Leo on social media weeks before the trip and called the pontiff 'terrible' on social media.

Trump blasted the pope for criticizing the war on Iran and for criticizing the Trump administration’s hard-line immigration policies. He also wrote, 'Leo should get his act together as Pope, use Common Sense, stop catering to the Radical Left, and focus on being a Great Pope, not a Politician. Thursday and Friday mark the one-year anniversary of the papacy of Pope Leo.

Pope Leo is the first US-born pontiff.