Trump Renews Attack on Pope Leo XIV as Rubio Heads to Vatican in Diplomatic Firestorm

ROME — Relations between Washington and the Vatican appeared to sink to a new low this week after President Donald Trump launched another public attack on Pope Leo XIV, accusing the pontiff of “endangering many Catholics and people” in remarks that immediately reverberated across global political and religious circles.

Speaking during an interview on The Hugh Hewitt Show, Mr. Trump claimed — inaccurately — that Pope Leo XIV believed Iran should be allowed to possess nuclear weapons.

The accusation stunned observers because the pope, elected in May 2025 as the first American-born leader of the Roman Catholic Church, has repeatedly reaffirmed the Vatican’s longstanding opposition to all nuclear arms.

From Castel Gandolfo, the papal summer residence outside Rome, Pope Leo responded in measured but unmistakably firm language, declining to mention Mr. Trump by name.

“The mission of the Church is to proclaim the Gospel and peace,” the pope said. “If someone wishes to criticize me for preaching the Gospel, they are free to do so.”

He then underscored the Vatican’s position with unusual clarity.

“For many years, the Church has opposed all nuclear weapons. There is no ambiguity about that,” he said.

The exchange instantly became front-page news across Europe and the United States, highlighting a widening ideological divide between the Trump administration’s nationalist foreign policy and the Vatican’s increasingly vocal calls for diplomacy, restraint and multilateral cooperation.

The tensions come just days before Secretary of State Marco Rubio is scheduled to meet privately with Pope Leo XIV at the Vatican on Thursday, May 7. Vatican officials confirmed the meeting, describing it as part of ongoing diplomatic engagement between the Holy See and Washington.

Mr. Rubio, a devout Catholic and the son of Cuban immigrants, now finds himself navigating one of the most delicate diplomatic missions of the Trump presidency.

Attempting to soften the president’s remarks, Mr. Rubio said Mr. Trump “does not understand why anyone would think Iran should possess nuclear weapons.” Yet analysts across Europe and the United States viewed the visit as an effort to prevent an already strained relationship from deteriorating further.

The clash reflects broader disagreements between the White House and the Vatican on issues ranging from the war in Iran to migration, international alliances and the role of global institutions.

Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican Secretary of State, signaled that Pope Leo XIV would not retreat from his message of peace.

“The pope answered in a profoundly Christian way,” Cardinal Parolin said.

For now, the world is watching whether quiet diplomacy can contain a confrontation that has rapidly become one of the most extraordinary public disputes between an American president and a modern pope.

(Sources: America Magazine, AP, Reuters, NBC News, Time, BBC)