Marco Rubio to meet pope at the Vatican after Trump attacks on pontiff

The US secretary of state, Marco Rubio, is to meet Pope Leo at the Vatican on Thursday in an effort to ease tensions after Donald Trump’s repeated criticisms of the first North American pontiff. Amid unprecedented strain on relations between the Holy See and Washington, Rubio is expected to meet Leo at the Apostolic Palace in the morning, before holding a series of meetings with the Italian government. Trump on Tuesday accused the pope of supporting nuclear weapons and “endangering a lot of Catholics’’ with his stance against the Iran war, in the latest attack by the US president on the pontiff. On Wednesday, Leo responded: “If anyone wants to criticise me for proclaiming the gospel, let them do so with the truth: the church has spoken out against all nuclear weapons for years, there is no doubt about that. I simply hope to be listened to because of the value of God’s word.” Rubio downplayed the rift between Trump and Leo and told reporters at the White House on Tuesday that the president’s recent criticism of the pontiff was rooted in his opposition to Iran potentially obtaining a nuclear weapon, which could be used against millions of Catholics around the world. Trump “doesn’t understand why anyone – leave aside the pope – would think that it’s a good idea for Iran to ever have a nuclear weapon,” Rubio said. Pope Leo XIV greeting the Italian prime minister, Giorgia Meloni, in January. …