Rubio to visit Italy, Vatican amid troop drawdown call, tension with Trump, Pope Leo: reports

Secretary of State Marco Rubio is reportedly planning to travel to the Vatican and Italy this week for meetings aimed at steadying relations after public spats between President Donald Trump, Pope Leo and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.

Rubio, a Catholic, is expected to meet with Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican’s top diplomatic official, Reuters reported, citing Italian newspapers La Repubblica and Corriere della Sera.

Rubio is also expected to hold talks with Italy’s foreign and defense ministers, the Italian newspapers reported.

The visit would come at a tense moment for U.S.-European relations. The Pentagon on Friday announced a drawdown of 5,000 U.S. troops from Germany, the largest American base presence in Europe, as disagreements over Iran and tariffs deepen strains between Washington and several European capitals.

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Trump added he "probably should" weigh a drawdown of U.S. troops for NATO in Italy, too.

"Why shouldn't I? Italy has not been of any help to us, and Spain has been horrible," Trump said Friday from the Oval Office.

"I didn't need the help, but I said, 'yeah, we'd love to have your help, because I want to see if they'd do it. And they, in all cases, they said, 'We don't want to get involved.' And you know the amazing thing is they use the Strait of Hormuz, and we don't. We don't use it. We don't need it. We have a lot of oil."

Trump has praised Rubio for his peacemaking and diplomatic efforts.

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"People like you," Trump said of Rubio during his State of the Union address earlier this year. The president even joked he might consider firing Rubio after the Munich Security Conference for being so likable and effective on the world stage.

"You have done a great job, a great Secretary of State. I think he'll go down as the best ever."

Italy remains one of the largest hosts of U.S. forces in Europe, with nearly 13,000 active-duty American troops stationed across six bases at the end of 2025.

It is uncertain whether Rubio will also meet with the pope, who has been critical of the Trump administration's peacemaking efforts in the Middle East.

Rubio and Vice President JD Vance attended Pope Leo's inaugural Mass in St. Peter’s Square and held a private meeting with him the following day in May 2025.

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The reported trip also comes weeks after Trump drew criticism from Christians across the political spectrum for attacking Leo on social media, including at one point calling the pontiff "terrible."

"I have no fear of the Trump administration," Pope Leo said last month before backing down and saying "I will not enter into debate."

Trump had repeatedly blasted the pope for criticizing the war on Iran and the Trump administration’s hard-line immigration policies.

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"Pope Leo is WEAK on Crime, and terrible for Foreign Policy," Trump wrote in a scathing Truth Social post.

"Leo should get his act together as Pope, use Common Sense, stop catering to the Radical Left, and focus on being a Great Pope, not a Politician. It’s hurting him very badly and, more importantly, it’s hurting the Catholic Church," he concluded.

Fox News reached out to the White House, State Department, Holy See press office and the Italian government for comment.

The trip is aimed in part at easing tensions between Washington and Rome after Trump publicly criticized Meloni, one of his closest European allies, over her stance on the Iran war and her defense of the pope.

Corriere reported that Rubio’s schedule has not been finalized. La Repubblica said a meeting with Meloni has not been ruled out.

Reuters contributed to this report.