Fact Check: Did Pentagon threaten the Vatican with military action?
WASHINGTON, DC: Following President Donald Trump’s April 2026 remarks criticizing Pope Leo XIV as “weak on crime and terrible for foreign policy,” a viral claim started circulating that Pentagon officials previously issued threats against the Catholic Church during a tense meeting with a senior Vatican diplomat. Their claim quickly spread across social media, prompting questions about its authenticity and leading to a closer fact-check.
Claim: Pentagon allegedly told Vatican ambassador the US has 'military power to do whatever it wants'
The Pentagon summoned the Pope's ambassador, told him the United States has the military power to do "whatever it wants," and warned that the Church better take its side.
— Shawn Ryan (@ShawnRyan762) April 8, 2026
They even invoked the Avignon Papacy, a dark chapter in history when a government used military force to bend…
During a January meeting, Pentagon officials allegedly stated the United States has the “military power to do whatever it wants” and that the “Church had better take its side.”
The claim spread widely across multiple platforms, with users repeating allegations that Pentagon officials had threatened the Vatican during the meeting, drawing millions of views and reactions online.
The claim gained traction after Pope Leo’s comments during Holy Week, in which he said that God “does not listen to the prayers of those who wage war,” a statement that some interpreted as criticism of the Trump administration and the ongoing US-Israeli conflict involving Iran.
The specific claim that Defense Department officials at the meeting, including Undersecretary for Policy Elbridge Colby, threatened the Holy See’s then-ambassador to the US, Cardinal Christophe Pierre, originated from an April 6 article published by The Free Press, a New York-based media outlet founded by Bari Weiss in 2021. The publication has often been described as conservative and pro-Israel.
Fact Check: Department of Defense denies allegation of military threats
Under Secretary of War for Policy Elbridge Colby @USWPColby had a substantive, respectful, and professional meeting with Cardinal Pierre, the then-Papal Nuncio, and his team on January 22, 2026. During the cordial meeting, they discussed a range of topics, including issues of… pic.twitter.com/McI0sB2wKC
— DOW Rapid Response (@DOWResponse) April 9, 2026
The Department of Defense confirmed that the meeting between Pentagon and Vatican officials did take place, but it disputed the allegations reported by The Free Press regarding supposed threats of military power.
The department stated that those claims remain unproven at the time of writing and were based on anonymous accounts from Vatican and US officials.
The Free Press also claimed that relations between the Vatican and the US had been deteriorating, allegedly influenced by recent remarks from the pope.
Reporter Mattia Ferraresi wrote, “President Donald Trump has not directly addressed the Pope's comments, but behind closed doors, tensions have been building for months—culminating in January, when senior U.S. defense officials summoned a top Vatican diplomat to the Pentagon. What happened inside that room set the tone for everything that followed."
Anonymous Vatican officials reportedly described the meeting as a “bitter lecture warning that the United States has the military power to do whatever it wants — and that the Church had better take its side.”
The report also alleged that one US official referenced the Avignon Papacy, comparing it to a period in the 1300s when the French Crown influenced papal authority.
A Pentagon official issued a statement on April 9 saying, "The meeting between Pentagon and Vatican officials was a respectful and reasonable discussion. We have nothing but the highest regard and welcome continued dialogue with the Holy See."
