Vatican City.- The Vatican confirmed this Monday that Pope Leo XIV will receive U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Thursday, an appointment that will take place after the clash between the pontiff and President Donald Trump.
A month ago, on April 7, the Pope had called the US president’s threat to end “an entire civilization” in his war against Tehran “unacceptable”, to which the president responded by calling him “weak” and “terrible at foreign policy”.
A week later, Leo XIV settled the matter by assuring that he did not fear the Trump Administration nor did he have any interest in debating with the president and advancing his intention to continue preaching peace.You may be interested in: Trump says Pope Leo XIV is “terrible in foreign policy” after his criticism of Iran and Venezuela
Following this clash, the head of US diplomacy will fly to Rome to, in addition to other foreseeable commitments in the Italian capital, meet with the compatriot Pope and try to shore up the relationship between Washington and the Vatican. It won’t be the first time they’ve seen each other, since on May 19, 2025, Leo XIV met in the Vatican with Rubio and Vice President JD Vance, both Catholics, one day after the start of his papacy. That same day, the pontiff will also receive the Prime Minister of Poland, Donald Tusk, whose arrival at the Apostolic Palace is scheduled for 8:45 local time (6:45 GMT).
