Live updates from the Middle East as Trump says a deal to end the war is close … Pope Leo XIV greets US Secretary of State, Marco Rubio. Photograph: Vatican Media 

Órla Ryan in The Irish Times

Thursday, May 07 

Main Points

  • Rubio and Pope Leo discussed the Middle East in a ‘constructive’ meeting at the Vatican today
  • The US and Iran are closing in on a one-page memo to end the war, according to officials
  • Oil prices edged up slightly on Thursday after a drop on Wednesday
  • Oil supplies are set to tighten further in the coming weeks, even if the US and Iran agree on a peace deal
  • EU’s transport chief has told airlines to pay passengers for fuel-linked cancellations
  • The UAE and buyers have sailed several tankers through the Strait of Hormuz
  • IDF claims to have killed Hizbullah commander

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio discussed “efforts to achieve a durable peace in the Middle East” in talks at the Vatican on Thursday, the U.S. State Department said.

Rubio met Pope Leo and afterwards Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin in a visit that lasted two-and-a-half hours.

U.S. State Department spokesman Tommy Pigott said Rubio and the pope discussed the situation in the Middle East, “and topics of mutual interest in the Western Hemisphere”.

“The meeting underscored the strong relationship between the United States and the Holy See and their shared commitment to promoting peace and human dignity,” he said.

In a separate statement about the Parolin meeting, Pigott said the two diplomats discussed “ongoing humanitarian efforts in the Western Hemisphere and efforts to achieve a durable peace in the Middle East”.

The discussion “reflected the enduring partnership between the United States and the Holy See in advancing religious freedom”, the statement said.

The meeting was aimed at repairing relations between the Vatican and the White House after Trump insulted the pope numerous times.

Some details are now emerging from the meeting.

The pair discussed “efforts to achieve a durable peace in the Middle East”, according to a statement from the US State Department quoted by AP.

The meeting showed a “strong” relationship between the US and the Vatican, it added.

Rubio initially met the pontiff before meeting senior Vatican officials, including top diplomat Italian cardinal Pietro Parolin, Reuters reported.