Pentagon Official Reportedly Warned Vatican to Take White House's 'Side,' Pope Leo Unlikely to Visit U.S. Under Trump

Pentagon Official Reportedly Warned Vatican to Take White House's 'Side,' Pope Leo Unlikely to Visit U.S. Under Trump

A senior Pentagon official reportedly summoned the Vatican's top U.S. diplomat to Washington and warned him that the Catholic Church "had better take" the side of the White House in foreign disputes, according to a report from Truthout, which cited original reporting by The Free Press and the Substack blog Letters From Leo.

The meeting allegedly took place shortly after Pope Leo XIV — the first American pope — delivered a "State of the World" address on January 9 in which he lamented that "a diplomacy that promotes dialogue and seeks consensus among all parties is being replaced by a diplomacy based on force."

What was reportedly said

According to Truthout, The Free Press originally reported that U.S. Undersecretary of Defense for Policy Elbridge Colby called Cardinal Christophe Pierre, the Vatican's U.S. diplomatic representative, to Washington. During the meeting, Colby reportedly told Pierre that the United States "has the military power to do whatever it wants in the world" and that "the Catholic Church had better take its side."

Another Pentagon official present at the meeting reportedly alluded to the Avignon papacy — a period in the 14th century during which the French monarchy ordered an attack on Pope Boniface VIII and subsequently forced seven successive popes to relocate from Rome to Avignon, France.

According to Truthout, Christopher Hale of the Substack blog Letters From Leo independently confirmed the meeting had taken place and reported that Vatican officials interpreted the Avignon papacy reference "as a threat to use military force against the Holy See."

Pope reportedly cancels U.S. visit plans

As a result of the reported exchange, Pope Leo is unlikely to visit the United States during Trump's presidency, according to Truthout. The pope reportedly rejected an invitation to the White House for the nation's 250th anniversary celebration on July 4 and is instead planning to visit the island of Lampedusa in the Mediterranean — a well-known arrival point for North African migrants attempting to reach Europe.

Hale reportedly noted that the pope "is too deliberate a man to have chosen that date by accident."

Context: U.S. military operations and papal criticism

The reported confrontation occurred against the backdrop of significant U.S. military actions abroad. According to Truthout, Pope Leo has spoken out frequently against Trump administration policies as the U.S. has engaged in military operations in Venezuela and Iran and threatened Cuba with an oil blockade.

Separately, House Democrats on Thursday attempted unsuccessfully to pass a war powers resolution to restrict Trump from continuing military operations in Iran, according to Truthout. Republicans gaveled out the pro forma session before the resolution could be introduced.

Important caveats

It should be noted that the Pentagon threat claims rest on a limited number of sources. The original reporting came from The Free Press, with independent confirmation from Christopher Hale's Substack blog. Truthout acknowledged the lack of mainstream media coverage of the story. As of the time of these reports, no major U.S. news outlets appear to have independently verified the account of the meeting, and neither the Pentagon nor the Vatican has been quoted responding to the claims in the available source material.

This article is based solely on the source material available. Readers should be aware that key claims in this story have not been independently verified by this outlet and originate from a small number of sources.