Rubio Meets Meloni in Rome Amid US-Italy Tensions Over Troops, Pope and Iran War

Secretary of State Marco Rubio meets Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni on Thursday in Rome amid diplomatic tensions with both Italy and the Vatican.

The meeting follows Rubio's talks the previous day at the Vatican with Pope Leo and senior church officials. The practicing Catholic secretary of state sought to calm relations after weeks of escalating rhetoric between President Donald Trump and the Holy See.

Meloni long served as Trump's closest ideological ally among major European leaders during his second term. But their political partnership has frayed amid disputes over the Iran war.

Tensions rose as Trump's clash with Pope Leo XIV overlapped with Italy's restrictions on using its territory for U.S. combat-linked operations related to the conflict.

On April 30, Trump said he would consider pulling troops out of Italy and Spain. "Yeah, probably. ... Why shouldn't I?" he said. "Italy has not been of any help to us," the president added.

Meloni built strong rapport with Trump through shared stances on immigration, nationalism, border security and opposition to progressive cultural politics. She attended his second inauguration in January 2025, the only European leader to do so, and visited him at Mar-a-Lago.

Their relationship appeared warm in public. At a 2025 Middle East summit in Egypt, Trump called Meloni "a beautiful young woman" and joked, "You don’t mind being called beautiful, right?" before praising her as an "incredible leader" respected throughout Italy.

Both leaders backed tougher border enforcement, criticized woke ideology in Western institutions and pushed nationalist identities. Trump allies often cited Meloni’s conservative Brothers of Italy party as a model populist movement in Europe.

The split surfaced when Meloni called Trump’s attacks on the pope "unacceptable." Trump lashed back and told aides she was "much different than I thought."

Italian media and European analysts call the dispute a remarkable deterioration between former allies.

The Vatican clash carries extra weight for Meloni. Pope Leo, the first U.S.-born pontiff, holds strong influence in Italy, where foreign criticism of the pope turns politically toxic. Trump’s comments on Leo’s opposition to the Iran war drew backlash from Italian Catholics and parts of the political establishment.

The Iran conflict adds complications. Italian officials voice discomfort over potential U.S. military escalation and access to bases in Italy. Domestic pressure pushes Rome to distance itself from Washington’s war handling.

Economic strains simmer too. Trump cut tariffs on some Italian exports, including pasta, earlier in 2026 as a "New Year’s gift" to Italy. But Rome and Brussels worry about broader tariff threats on European goods.

Rubio’s visit aims to stabilize ties before the rift worsens. He plans to cover Middle East security, NATO coordination, migration and trade with Meloni and other officials to keep Italy as a key U.S. partner in Southern Europe.

The White House and Italian embassy in the U.S. could not immediately be reached for comment.