Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni confirmed she is likely to meet with Rubio, too. When reporters at the EU-Armenia summit in Yerevan asked her about whether she would sit down with the secretary of state during his Rome trip, she said: “I think so.” Her office did not respond to POLITICO’s request for comment.
Rubio previously met Leo alongside Vice President JD Vance in May 2025 following the pope’s inaugural Mass in St. Peter’s Square. His last visit to Italy dates back to February, when he and Vance met Meloni on the sidelines of the Olympic Winter Games.
The Vatican announced the pope is also meeting Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk Thursday afternoon.
Jacopo Barigazzi contributed to this report.