Pope Leo XIV Meets US Vice President and Secretary of State at Vatican Ahead of Push to End Russia-Ukraine Conflict

TDT | Manama

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Pope Leo XIV received US Vice President J.D. Vance and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Monday at the Vatican, ahead of a US-led diplomatic effort aimed at ending the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict.

The Vatican released photos showing Vance and Rubio smiling alongside the Chicago-born pontiff, who was elected as the leader of the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics on May 8, becoming the first pope from the United States.

The two American officials were among around 200,000 dignitaries, royals, and faithful who gathered in St. Peter’s Square on Sunday to mark the official start of Leo’s papacy during an inauguration mass.

Peace has been a central theme of Pope Leo’s papacy so far, and discussions with Vance and Rubio were expected to focus on the US administration’s role in pushing for a resolution to the conflict in Ukraine.

During the visit, Vice President Vance presented Pope Leo with an invitation from US President Donald Trump to visit the White House, with hopes the visit will take place soon, according to Vance’s spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt.

President Trump is scheduled to hold a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin later Monday as part of ongoing efforts to end the war triggered by Moscow’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

In addition to meeting with the pope, Vance held "cordial talks" with the Vatican’s Secretary for Relations with States, Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher. The Vatican described the meeting as an opportunity to express satisfaction with the strong bilateral relations and to exchange views on pressing international issues, emphasizing the importance of respecting humanitarian and international law in conflict zones and calling for negotiated solutions.

The inauguration weekend saw a flurry of diplomatic activity, with global leaders discussing both the conflict in Ukraine and Israel’s offensive in Gaza.

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky, who attended the inauguration mass, met privately with Pope Leo on Sunday and later held talks with Vance and Rubio. The US officials and Zelensky discussed their shared goal of ending the bloodshed in Ukraine, according to the vice president’s office.