Ahead Of Trump-Pope Francis Meeting, List Of World Leaders President Has Already Met

The White House said Tuesday that it will reach out to the Vatican to set up a meeting of President Donald Trump with Pope Francis during the president’s visit to Italy in May to participate in the G7 summit of leaders.

However, the White House also mentioned that nothing has been confirmed or scheduled yet.

"We will be reaching out to the Vatican to see if an audience with the pope can be accommodated," White House spokesman Sean Spicer said.

"We would be honored to have an audience with his holiness," he added, according to the Telegraph.

Vatican spokesman Greg Burke told AFP "as of the end of last week we had not had an official request for an audience but for sure we would welcome it."

Before attending the G7 summit of leaders in Taormina, Sicily, Italy on May 26-27, Trump has been scheduled to be a part of a NATO summit in Brussels.

The 11 former American presidents before Trump have met with the Pope, however Trump’s meeting could be a little unusual as the two have quite a history of differing on terms of world view.

"Anyone, whoever he is, who only wants to build walls and not bridges is not a Christian," Pope Francis told journalists last year while responding to a question about the president’s anti-immigrant stance.

Trump reacted to his comment at that time and said "For a religious leader to question a person's faith is disgraceful."

Trump has been meeting several world leaders since he took office.

During the president’s first weekend in the White House, he spoke to leaders of the country’s neighbors over the phone to schedule meetings with them. Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke over the phone for the first time with the U.S. president.

Theresa May was the first foreign leader to meet Trump face-to-face in January soon after the president took office.

“When I sit down, I think the biggest statement that will be made about the role of women is the fact that I will be there as a female prime minister — prime minister of the United Kingdom — directly taking to him about the interests that we share,” she told BBC One at that time.

Trump met with the Mexican President Peña Nieto on Jan. 31. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau met with the president in February. Trump also met with Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister in February soon after his meeting with Trudeau.

Recently the president met with Chinese President Xi Jinping during the leader’s first visit to the United States on April 6-7.