U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo arrived Thursday at the Vatican to meet with top Holy See officials, a day after tensions over American opposition to the Vatican's China policy spilled out in public. Pompeo was meeting with the Vatican secretary of state, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, and the foreign minister, Archbishop Paul Gallagher. The Vatican declined his request to see Pope Francis, citing Holy See policy to not grant papal audiences during election campaigns, Parolin said. The Vatican secretary of state, Parolin, said the Holy See was "surprised" by Pompeo's article. He is also strongly associated with conservative Protestant and Catholic movements, many of which have been critical of Pope Francis.

Source: CBC News October 01, 2020 12:12 UTC