The visit by the US secretary of state to the Vatican comes as President Donald Trump continues to disparage the Catholic leader over criticism of the Iran war.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has left the Vatican after a lengthy meeting with Pope Leo on Thursday, amid tensions between the pontiff and President Donald Trump.
Rubio spent around two and a half hours inside, first meeting the pope, then holding talks with senior Vatican officials, including Cardinal Pietro Parolin.
State Department spokesman Tommy Pigott echoed the statement by saying Rubio's meeting with Leo was a sign of a "strong" relationship between the Vatican and the US.
The Vatican said the discussions were "cordial" and had addressed global conflicts and humanitarian issues.
They also addressed "the need to work tirelessly for peace."
Leo gave Rubio a pen made of olive wood, noting that "the olive tree is a plant of peace."
Rubio sought to play down the rift between Trump and Pope Leo ahead of his meeting with the leader of the Catholic Church.
In remarks to reporters on Tuesday, Rubio said the trip was planned before Trump lashed out at the Pope for criticizing the war in Iran .
Pope Leo condemns use of religion to justify Iran war
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In Trump's latest remarks, the president claimed the pope thinks it is "oK for Iran to have a nuclear weapon."
"Obviously we had some stuff that happened … There's a lot to talk about with the Vatican," Rubio told reporters.
On Wednesday, Vatican secretary of state, Cardinal Pietro Parolin said "I imagine we'll talk about everything that's happened in recent days, we can't avoid touching on these topics."
"We'll listen to him", Parolin added, while noting that Washington initiated the meeting.
Elected one year ago this Friday, Pope Leo XIV is the first US pope.
He angered Trump after becoming a prominent critic of the Iran war and the Trump administration's hardline anti-immigration policies.
Despite having enjoyed heavy support from Catholic voters, Trump has continued a series of verbal attacks against the pope in recent weeks.
Earlier in April, Trump claimed Leo "wouldn't be in the Vatican" if he weren't president, after the pope said in a statement "no cause can justify the shedding of innocent blood." Trump then posted an AI-generated image of himself portrayed as a god-like figure, which was quickly taken down.
After the latest outburst Monday, in which Trump claimed Leo was "endangering a lot of Catholics by opposing the war," the pope said "if anyone wishes to criticize me for proclaiming the Gospel, let them do so truthfully."
"The Church has spoken out against all nuclear weapons for years, so there is no doubt about that," he added.
Can Pope Leo move President Trump on the Iran war?
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Source: This article was originally published by Deutsche Welle (DW)
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