Macron Meets Pope Leo XIV on Middle East Crisis

French President Emmanuel Macron met with Pope Leo XIV for the first time on Friday at the Vatican, where the two leaders discussed the ongoing Middle East crisis and called for renewed diplomatic efforts to resolve the conflict with Iran.

The private audience took place in the pope's study at the Apostolic Palace and lasted about two hours, longer than a typical papal meeting. Macron, accompanied by his wife Brigitte and a French delegation, presented the pontiff with several gifts, including a jersey signed by members of France's national basketball team, a book on the reconstruction of Notre-Dame Cathedral following its 2019 fire, a reproduction of a 17th-century map by missionary Jacques Marquette, and a collection of writings by author Georges Bernanos. The pope, a Chicago-born sports enthusiast who enjoys basketball and recently met with the Harlem Globetrotters, is the first American to lead the world's 1.4 billion Catholics. Elected in May 2025 after the death of Pope Francis, Leo XIV spoke English with Macron during the encounter, which Vatican footage described as formal.

The discussions centered on the war in the Middle East, triggered by U.S. strikes on Iran under...