American Secretary of State Marco Rubio will meet with Pope Leo XIV to discuss the Middle East and common interests.

Marco Rubio, the American Secretary of State, will make an official visit to Italy from May 6 to 8, according to the announcement from the U.S. Department of State. During this visit, Rubio will meet with Pope Leo XIV on May 7 at 11:30 AM at the Apostolic Palace in Vatican City to discuss the situation in the Middle East and common interests in the Western Hemisphere.

The press office of the Holy See has confirmed the meeting, which comes after Rubio and the Pope met last year following the inaugural mass of the pontificate. Rubio's visit comes shortly after an exchange of words between President Donald Trump and Pope Leo XIV regarding the war in the Middle East, in which Trump criticized the pontiff, while Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni defended the Pope's position, emphasizing the importance of the call for peace.