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20-05-2025
VATICAN CITY: Pope Leo XIV has held “cordial” talks with US Vice-President JD Vance, according to the Vatican.
It comes a day after Vance, a practicing Catholic joined other dignitaries and thousands of worshipers at the Pope’s inaugural mass on Sunday.
After Pope Leo became the first American to lead the Roman Catholic Church earlier this month, it emerged he had previously appeared to make veiled criticisms of Vance and the wider Trump administration’s migration stance.
In a statement, the Holy See said both sides had expressed satisfaction with relations between the US and Vatican during face-to-face talks on Monday.
Religious freedom and cooperation between church and state were also discussed at the meeting, with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio also taking part.
A statement continued; “Finally, there was an exchange of views on current international issues with a shared call for respect for humanitarian and international law in conflict zones, and support for negotiated solutions among the parties involved.”
The papal audience lasted 45 minutes, Vance’s spokesperson said. It took place behind closed doors without reporters present.
The Vatican said Vance also held positive talks with Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, who is responsible for the Holy See’s diplomatic relations.
In February, an X account under Leo’s name shared criticism of the White House’s plans for mass deportations of migrants.
That same month, the account also shared a link to an opinion piece titled; “JD Vance is wrong; Jesus doesn’t ask us to rank our love for others.”
The Vatican has not responded to previous requests of media to confirm whether the account belonged to Pope Leo.
On Sunday, Vance said the United States was “very proud” of the Chicago-born pontiff. “Certainly our prayers go with him as he starts this very important work,” the vice-president said.
A couple of days ago, Pope Leo XIV has called for unity at his inaugural Mass at the Vatican attended by thousands of faithful and world leaders including Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelensky.
During the address on Sunday, he criticized economic systems which he said exploited “Earth’s resources” and marginalized the poor.
He also said he would seek to govern “without ever yielding to the temptation to be an autocrat”.
The Pope noted efforts to end the war in Ukraine in a prayer after the service and also held a meeting with Zelensky. The pontiff had called for an end to the war in his first days in office.
The Ukrainian leader thanked the new Catholic leader for his “support for Ukraine” and “clear voice in defence of a just and lasting peace”.
Earlier on Sunday, the Pope had addressed worshippers in St Peter’s Square. Thousands of pilgrims stood in reverence as the pope received the symbols of office, blessed the people and issued a strong call for unity.
The Mass from the first US and Peruvian pontiff also drew attendance from dignitaries including US Vice President JD Vance as well as politicians from Germany to Peru as well as faith leaders and European royals.
“We still see too much discord, too many wounds caused by hatred, violence, prejudice, the fear of difference, and an economic paradigm that exploits the Earth’s resources and marginalizes the poorest,” he said.
In a prayer afterwards, he noted the efforts for a ceasefire in Ukraine, before holding a private audience with Zelensky and his wife. (Int’l Monitoring Desk)
