VATICAN CITY — Secretary of State Marco Rubio will travel to Rome and Vatican City to meet Pope Leo XIV and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni in an effort to ease tensions between President Donald Trump and the Holy See over U.S. policies, including the Iran war. The State Department said Rubio will be in Italy on Thursday and Friday, with the Vatican confirming his meeting with the pontiff on Thursday.

"Secretary Rubio will meet with Holy See leadership to discuss the situation in the Middle East and mutual interests in the Western Hemisphere," the department said. It added that "Meetings with Italian counterparts will be focused on shared security interests and strategic alignment."

The visit follows a series of public disagreements between Trump and Pope Leo XIV, the first U.S.-born pope. Last month, Trump said on social media that the pope was soft on crime and terrorism due to the administration's immigration policies, deportations and the Iran war. Trump also posted a social media image likening himself to Jesus Christ and has refused to apologize to the pope.

"The Pope would rather talk about the fact that it's OK for Iran to have a nuclear weapon, and I don't think that's very good. I think he's endangering a lot of Catholics and a lot of people. But I guess if it's up to the Pope, he thinks it's just fine for Iran to have a nuclear weapon," Trump said.

Pope Leo XIV has responded to the friction in public remarks, saying "God doesn't listen to the prayers of those who wage war." He said his general appeal for peace and his criticisms of the Iran war and other conflicts were not a direct attack on Trump or anyone else. "I have no fear of the Trump administration or speaking out loudly," the pope said.

Meloni, who is scheduled to meet Rubio during the trip, has called Trump's comments about the pope unacceptable. Trump has criticized Meloni over what he viewed as a lack of support for the Iran war.

Brian Burch, the U.S. Ambassador to the Holy See, described the purpose of the visit. "Nations have disagreements, and I think one of the ways that you work through those is through fraternity and authentic dialogue," he said. "I think the secretary is coming here in that spirit. To have a frank conversation about U.S. policy, to engage in dialogue."

Rubio, who is Catholic, will with this trip have visited Italy or the Vatican at least three times as the president's top diplomat. In May 2025, he attended Pope Leo XIV's inaugural mass and had a private meeting with the pontiff alongside Vice President JD Vance.