{"id":14745,"date":"2026-05-07T21:40:37","date_gmt":"2026-05-07T21:40:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/globalnewstoday.uk\/index.php\/2026\/05\/07\/marco-rubio-meets-with-pope-leo-after-trumps-criticism-over-iran-war-nbc-news\/"},"modified":"2026-05-07T21:40:37","modified_gmt":"2026-05-07T21:40:37","slug":"marco-rubio-meets-with-pope-leo-after-trumps-criticism-over-iran-war-nbc-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/globalnewstoday.uk\/index.php\/2026\/05\/07\/marco-rubio-meets-with-pope-leo-after-trumps-criticism-over-iran-war-nbc-news\/","title":{"rendered":"Marco Rubio meets with Pope Leo after Trump\u2019s criticism over Iran war – NBC News"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Secretary of State Marco Rubio<\/a> discussed the Middle East with Pope Leo<\/a> at the Vatican on Thursday, at an audience that follows President Donald Trump<\/a>\u2019s criticism of the first American pontiff over the Iran war<\/a>.
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The closed-door meeting, which lasted 45 minutes, was the first between the head of the Catholic Church and a Trump cabinet official in nearly a year.
It comes at a fraught time between Washington and the Holy See, with relations at a low after weeks of presidential attacks on Leo and the Chicago-born pope\u2019s outspoken responses.
Rubio, a practicing Catholic, said in an X post that he underscored \u201cour shared commitment to promoting peace and human dignity,\u201d while a Vatican statement said that there was an \u201cexchange of views\u201d on the regional and international situation during the meeting.
The \u201cshared commitment to fostering good bilateral relations\u201d was reaffirmed, the Vatican statement said, while State Department spokesman Tommy Pigott said in a statement that the meeting \u201cunderscored the strong relationship\u201d between the U.S. and the Vatican.
During a brief appearance in front of the cameras, the Pope gave Rubio the symbolic gift of an olive-wood pen. \u201cBeing, of course, the plant of peace,\u201d he stressed.
Rubio gave the Pope a miniature crystal football emblazoned with the State Department seal, adding: \u201cWhat to get someone who has everything?\u201d
Asked by reporters Tuesday if he was going to the Vatican to \u201csmooth things over with the Pope,\u201d Rubio said the trip had been planned before and \u201cobviously we had some stuff that happened.\u201d
He said there was \u201ca lot to talk about\u201d with the Vatican, including humanitarian aid for Cuba<\/a> and concerns over religious freedom around the world.
The U.S. ambassador to the Holy See, Brian Burch, told journalists Tuesday<\/a> that the conversation between the pope and Rubio was likely to be \u201cfrank.\u201d
Rubio also met with the Vatican secretary of state, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, who strongly defended Leo and criticized Trump\u2019s comments. \u201cAttacking him like that or criticizing what he does seems a bit strange to me, to say the least,\u201d Parolin said Wednesday.
Trump has publicly disparaged Leo for criticizing the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran, calling the pontiff \u201cweak on crime\u201d and \u201cterrible for foreign policy\u201d<\/a> last month, and telling him to \u201cget his act together\u201d and not be a politician. \u201cI don\u2019t want a Pope who thinks it\u2019s OK for Iran to have a Nuclear Weapon,\u201d Trump said.
The president told NBC News last month that he was \u201cnot a big fan\u201d of the pope, adding: \u201cI don\u2019t think he\u2019s doing a very good job. He likes crime, I guess.\u201d
Trump doubled down on his criticism this week ahead of Rubio\u2019s visit.
\u201cThe Pope would rather talk about the fact that it\u2019s okay for Iran to have a nuclear weapon, and I don\u2019t think that\u2019s very good,\u201d Trump told right-wing radio talk show host Hugh Hewitt. He also claimed that Leo was \u201cendangering a lot of Catholics.\u201d
That suggestion stemmed from the president\u2019s determination that Iran not have a nuclear weapon, Rubio said, which could be used \u201cagainst places that have a lot of Catholics, and Christians, and others for that matter.\u201d
Leo, who will mark his first year as the pontiff on Friday, has hit back.
The pope said he was not interested in a debate with Trump<\/a> and had \u201cno fear of the Trump administration\u201d<\/a> as he vowed to keep up his appeals for peace, which he said were rooted in the Gospel.
He has also rejected the idea that he supported nuclear weapons. \u201cThe Church has for years spoken out against all nuclear weapons, so there is no doubt about that, and so I simply hope to be heard for the sake of the word of God,\u201d he said Tuesday.
\u201cIf anyone wishes to criticize me for proclaiming the Gospel, let them do so with truth,\u201d he added.
Trump has refused to apologize to Leo and has added to the controversy by posting an image on social media that appeared to depict himself as Jesus Christ. It was later deleted after backlash.
During a tour of Africa last month, Leo said that the world was being \u201cravaged by a handful of tyrants\u201d and blasted leaders who spend billions on wars, even though he challenged any suggestion that the remark was a direct rebuke of Trump\u2019s actions in Iran.<\/a>
In earlier comments, Leo denounced the \u201cdelusion of omnipotence\u201d that is fueling the U.S.-Israel war in Iran and demanded that political leaders negotiate peace. He has also called Trump\u2019s threat to destroy the entire Iranian civilization \u201ctruly unacceptable.\u201d
Leo had previously also criticized<\/a> the Trump administration\u2019s immigration policies.
America\u2019s top diplomat will also meet with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni on Friday, a close Trump ally in Europe who has strongly defended the pope. Trump has criticized Meloni and other European allies for their lack of support for the Iran war. <\/a>
Yuliya Talmazan is a reporter for NBC News Digital, based in London.
© 2026 NBCUniversal Media, LLC<\/p>\n

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