ROME (AP) — U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio is opening his second day of fence-mending meetings Friday with talks scheduled with Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni in a bid to ease tensions over the war with Iran.
President Donald Trump's tariffs, his complaints about Europe's unwillingness to help the U.S. with the war and his attacks against Pope Leo XIV have fueled weeks of sharp disagreements over trade and defense cooperation between the two traditionally strong allies.
Rubio will also meet Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani.
The trip began Thursday with Rubio's meeting Leo as part his broader effort to defuse trans-Atlantic tensions. Meloni and Tajani are expected to use the meetings to try to preserve Italy’s strategic partnership with the U.S. while pushing back against Washington's pressure over the Iran conflict.
Trump has criticized both the pope and Italy’s government for opposing the war. Meloni has called the conflict “illegal” and rebuked Trump’s remarks about the pontiff as “unacceptable.”
Trump responded by accusing Meloni of lacking courage and being “negative” on helping the U.S. with the war. Meloni had long been seen as one of Trump's top allies in Europe, but Trump has openly said their relationship has cooled.
The U.S. has announced a decision to pull 5,000 military personnel from Germany and Trump has threatened to withdraw more troops from Italy and Spain over their stance on the war.
Italy, a key logistics hub for U.S. and allied operations in the Mediterranean, the Middle East and North Africa, could see its role affected if troop levels are reduced, raising concerns about NATO’s posture in southern Europe.
Defense cooperation was already tested in late March, when Italy declined to allow U.S. bombers bound for the Middle East to land at Sigonella base in Sicily without parliamentary approval.
Italy's Constitution and treaties lay out the precise ways in which the bases can be used: They allow logistics and training operations within a NATO framework, but generally exclude direct offensive operations, such as bombing, unless specifically authorized.
Meloni and Tajani have repeatedly said Italy doesn't want to participate in the Iran conflict, and that if the U.S. seeks permission to use Italian bases for offensive purposes, any decision must be approved by Parliament, where opposition to the war is strong.
At stake for Rome are both its security partnership with Washington and the economic impact of the war. Meloni has warned the closure of the Strait of Hormuz is driving up energy costs and squeezing household purchasing power, while potential U.S. tariff threats have raised concerns for Italy’s export-driven economy.
Meloni is reeling from a referendum defeat in March and facing domestic opposition to the war, complicating her position.
Since taking office in 2022, Meloni has sought to cast herself as a reliable U.S. ally and a bridge between Washington and Europe, but disputes over Iran and trade — and her recent political setback — have exposed the limits of the role.
At the Vatican, Rubio held a 2½-hour visit Thursday that included meetings with Leo and Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin, discussing “efforts to achieve a durable peace in the Middle East” and other issues of mutual interest, according to the U.S. State Department.
Both sides stressed that Rubio’s meetings with Leo and the Vatican’s top diplomat underscored strong bilateral ties.
U.S. officials said the discussions highlighted “the strong relationship between the United States and the Holy See” and a shared commitment to promoting peace and human dignity.
