Pope Leo XIV received US Vice President J.D. Vance on the morning of May 19, 2025, the Vatican press office reported. Their meeting took place against the backdrop of negotiations aimed at ending ongoing international conflicts, particularly in Ukraine.
After attending the inaugural Mass of Pope Leo XIV, the politician briefly greeted the Pope in St. Peter's Basilica. On Monday morning, the two men met in the Apostolic Palace for an audience that lasted 45 minutes, according to the White House, the content of which was not disclosed by either party. The White House said that US Secretary of State Marco Rubio also participated in part of the talks.
Vance was then received by Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, Secretary for Relations with States. The Vatican reported:
This morning, Monday 19 May 2025, His Holiness Leo XIV received in audience the Vice President of the United States of America, the Honourable James David Vance, who subsequently met with His Excellency Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, Secretary for Relations with States and International Organizations.
During the cordial talks held at the Secretariat of State, satisfaction at the good bilateral relations was reiterated, and the collaboration between Church and State was discussed, as well as some matters of special relevance to ecclesial life and religious freedom.
Finally, there was an exchange of views on some current international issues, calling for respect for humanitarian law and international law in areas of conflict and for a negotiated solution between the parties involved.
No country was mentioned specifically in the statement, but these topics echo the call for “negotiations for a just and lasting peace” in Ukraine made by Pope Leo at the end of Mass the previous day — negotiations in which the Trump administration is particularly involved.
Zelensky
Yesterday, shortly after the inaugural Mass, Vice President Vance met with President Volodymyr Zelensky in the gardens of the U.S. ambassador's residence in Italy.
This meeting came shortly after Zelensky was received by Pope Leo XIV.
The meeting between Vance and Zelensky apparently took place in a more cordial atmosphere than their previous meeting at the White House on February 28.
After that episode, the Holy See had the opportunity to facilitate rapprochement between Ukraine and the United States on April 26, during the funeral of Pope Francis, which was attended by the presidents of both countries. On the sidelines of the ceremony at St. Peter's Basilica, Trump and Zelensky met face to face for the first time since the earlier altercation.
J.D. Vance, one of the last people to meet Francis
J.D. Vance was the last politician to be received in audience by Pope Francis. The two spoke briefly on April 20, the eve of the death of the 266th pope. The Argentine pontiff had agreed to meet the politician in the Santa Marta residence for a very brief moment, shortly before his last appearance in St. Peter's Square.
The US vice president had come to Rome with his family to honor diplomatic engagements, but also to participate in Holy Week. A convert to Catholicism in 2019 (after reading St. Augustine), Vance attended the Passion service in St. Peter's Basilica on April 18. The following day, he met with Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin, and the two men exchanged views on current conflicts, the plight of migrants, and the place of the Catholic Church in the United States.
