Vance in Rome: Vatican Easter, EU tariffs, and Ukraine on the agenda

US Vice President JD Vance met with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni in Rome on April 18, ahead of Easter celebrations at the Vatican and a scheduled meeting with the Vatican’s top diplomat. The visit marks a significant stop in Vance’s European itinerary as Washington and Rome navigate complex issues spanning trade, war, and faith.

Meloni—who shares conservative values with Vance and US President Donald Trump—hosted the Vice President at Palazzo Chigi, the Italian prime minister’s official residence, Caliber.Az reports via Western media.

Their meeting followed her high-profile trip to Washington a day earlier, where she met with Trump in a bid to ease tensions over threatened US tariffs on European exports.

Italy, the world’s fourth-largest exporter, sends about 10 per cent of its goods to the United States, and Meloni has taken a lead role in lobbying to avoid Trump’s proposed 20 per cent tariff hike on EU exports. The measure, though currently suspended for 90 days, poses significant economic risks for Italian industry.

Speaking briefly to reporters, Vance said he was “looking forward to spending Easter here,” and praised the spiritual setting. “This is a place that was built by people that love humans and love God,” he said. “It really lifts up the human spirit.”

Trade and geopolitical matters also dominated the closed-door discussions. Vance said he and Meloni reviewed the current state of EU-US tariff negotiations and also discussed developments in the ongoing war between Ukraine and Russia. “We have some interesting things to report on, of course, in private,” he said. “I won't prejudge them, but we do feel optimistic that we can hopefully bring this war, this very brutal war, to a close.”

The visit to Rome is Vance’s first return to Europe since his provocative speech at the Munich Security Conference in February, where he criticised the European Union over culture war issues and called on the bloc to take greater responsibility for its own security. That speech drew both praise and rebuke across European capitals.

On April 19, Vance will meet with Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican’s Secretary of State and the second-most powerful figure at the Holy See after Pope Francis. The meeting is expected to touch on global humanitarian concerns and religious diplomacy.

A devout Catholic who converted in his mid-30s, the 40-year-old Vice President is travelling with his wife and three children. The family is expected to join Easter Sunday celebrations at St. Peter’s.

Meloni’s diplomatic initiative has drawn both praise and criticism within Europe. Her meeting with Trump on Thursday made her the first European leader to visit him since his tariff threats. The two held a warm working lunch and a discussion in the Oval Office, with Trump describing Meloni as “fantastic.”

Positioning herself as a key transatlantic interlocutor, Meloni stressed their shared ideological ground and emphasised her ambition to “make the West great again”—a nod to Trump’s political mantra.

However, her overture to Trump has raised eyebrows in Brussels and other European capitals. EU officials worry that Meloni’s personal diplomacy could undermine the bloc’s unity in trade talks with Washington.

Trump, for his part, signalled he was open to a future agreement with the European Union but was in “no rush.” He reiterated familiar criticisms of the bloc, claiming it was trying to “screw” the United States.

Ukraine remained a delicate issue during the Vance-Meloni talks. Meloni has been a vocal supporter of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in 2022. Just days earlier, she condemned a deadly Russian attack on the Ukrainian city of Sumy as “horrible and vile.”

In contrast, Trump has unsettled allies with his more conciliatory stance toward Moscow and repeated criticisms of Zelenskyy. In a February televised Oval Office exchange, both Trump and Vance openly challenged the Ukrainian president.

“I don’t hold Zelenskyy responsible,” Trump said on April 17 while seated beside Meloni, “but I’m not exactly thrilled with the fact that that war started,” adding pointedly that he was “not a big fan” of the Ukrainian leader's handling of the war.

By Tamilla Hasanova