By Marcus Walker and Robbie Gramer
ROME -- Secretary of State Marco Rubio is visiting the Eternal City as President Trump's Mr. Fix It, on a mission to mend fences with the Catholic Church and the Italian government.
His boss isn't making it easy.
Trump's assertion this week that Pope Leo XIV believes "it's OK for Iran to have a nuclear weapon" has vexed the Vatican, which opposes nuclear weapons everywhere, and Italy, where respect for the papacy runs deep.
The renewed tensions, following months of White House quarreling with both the Catholic Church and European allies, are a test of Rubio's political skills -- and a tricky balancing act.
Much of the world hopes Rubio can be a moderating influence on a president whose unpredictable decision-making, including on the war with Iran, is causing consternation among U.S. allies from Europe to the Middle East.
But Rubio also won't distance himself from Trump, and was expected to represent the administration's views and criticisms of its partners at a meeting with Leo on Thursday and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni on Friday.
"Rubio is the Trump administration's most likable and effective communicator on foreign policy," said Matthew Kroenig, a Republican foreign-policy expert and former adviser to Rubio's 2016 presidential campaign. Many Republicans are annoyed with Europe for "some good and practical reasons," said Kroenig -- from decades of overreliance on U.S. security protection to unwillingness to support U.S. military operations against Iran.
The administration is also frustrated with the Vatican and U.S. Catholic leaders' stance against the war, which Vice President JD Vance -- an avowed Catholic like Rubio -- has suggested leans too far toward pacifism.
The rift with Leo, head of the global Catholic Church with its 1.4 billion faithful, poses political risks for the Trump administration, as the pope's voice carries significant weight with American Catholics, an important source of Republican votes.
Rubio's smooth talk has both reassured and frustrated U.S. allies unnerved by his boss. His speech at an international security conference in Germany in February combined support for the Atlantic alliance with criticism of Europe's underfunded defense as well as its migration policies, which the Trump administration argues are eroding Europe's Western, Christian heritage.
"Rubio did not repudiate any of Trump's policies toward or concerns about Europe, but delivered the message in a way that was well received overall," said Kroenig.
But European allies who hoped Rubio could intervene when Trump threatened to seize the Danish territory of Greenland were left wanting. The Greenland dispute has left lasting scars in Europe, with many European officials calling it the worst breach of trust in the history of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.
Rubio, along with Vance, is widely seen as a top contender to lead the Republicans after Trump. Many in Europe would prefer the former, viewing him as more pragmatic and less ideological.
"Europeans still recognize that they are dependent on the U.S., and that a day will come when mutual interests will allow for a more constructive trans-Atlantic agenda," said Nathalie Tocci, a former diplomatic adviser to the European Union.
"However, I think there has been a structural break in the relationship because trust has been broken," said Tocci, now a professor at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies in Bologna.
The American threat to seize a European ally's territory appalled even many right-wing nationalist parties in the region that are sympathetic to the president's MAGA movement on issues such as immigration.
Even Italy's right-wing premier, Meloni, who was seen as one of Trump's closer friends in Europe last year, had to distance herself from the president when he lambasted the pope in a lengthy post on Truth Social in April. Meloni said the president's words were "unacceptable," prompting a broadside against her by Trump, who accused her of lacking courage.
Rubio's meeting with Meloni on Friday will likely be a show of unity, said Carlo Calenda, an Italian senator who leads the centrist opposition party Action. "The reality is that public opinion is very against Trump, considers Trump responsible for inflation and high oil prices and for general instability," said Calenda.
Meloni, who faces Italian national elections next year, can't go back to presenting herself as a bridge between Europe and MAGA, he said. "The general public thinks Trump is crazy, basically, and that he's treating us in a non-proper way." Attacks on the pope have only made Trump more toxic in Italy, he said.
"The attacks against the Holy Father, head and spiritual guide of the Catholic Church, are neither acceptable nor helpful to the cause of peace," Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, who is due to meet with Rubio on Friday, said this week on social media.
After Trump renewed his attack on the pope on Monday over Iran's nuclear program, Leo said the president was spreading falsehoods, without naming him.
"If anyone wants to criticize me for proclaiming the gospel, let them do so with truth -- the church has spoken against all nuclear weapons for years," Leo told reporters on Tuesday. The pope has said the U.S.-led war "is not solving anything" -- an assessment shared also by many European governments.
Despite the tensions, the pontiff rolled out the red carpet for Trump's top diplomat. Rubio entered the Vatican through the Arch of the Bells, a privilege reserved for senior dignitaries, flanked by the colorfully clad Swiss Guards, who have been providing security to popes since 1506.
He spent nearly three hours at the Vatican, where he met with Leo as well as his most senior aide, Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin. Parolin this week called Trump's attacks on the pope "a bit strange."
State Department spokesman Tommy Pigott said Rubio's visit to the Vatican was long-planned and was focused on "discussing areas of mutual concern and opportunity" with the Catholic Church. The meeting with the pope "underscored the strong relationship between the United States and the Holy See and their shared commitment to promoting peace and human dignity," Pigott said.
Rubio's previous conversations with Leo and Parolin have been civil, despite differences on issues ranging from the treatment of migrants to the use of military force, according to senior Vatican officials.
Cuba was high on Thursday's agenda, officials said. Rubio has led the U.S. effort to bring about political change on the Communist-ruled island. The Vatican has tried to mediate between Washington and Havana, dissuade the U.S. from using force and ameliorate an economic crisis compounded this year by a U.S. oil blockade. Rubio said this week they will discuss cooperation in delivering humanitarian aid.
Write to Marcus Walker at Marcus.Walker@wsj.com and Robbie Gramer at robbie.gramer@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
May 07, 2026 09:21 ET (13:21 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2026 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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