President Donald Trump will visit Israel, the Vatican and Saudi Arabia during his first foreign trip as president, according to Politico.
Politico reported that the trip, which will take place later this month, will also include a visit to a NATO meeting in Brussels on May 25 and at the G7 summit in Sicily the next day.
The Washington Post reported that White House officials said the trip is an effort to meet with representatives of the world's leading religious groups to discuss "the common cause" of combating terrorism, "reining in Iran," and “unifying the world against intolerance.”
The report that Trump will visit Israel comes the day after he hosted Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas at the White House, vowing to negotiate peace between Israel and the Palestinians. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has frequently praised Trump.
During his presidential campaign, Trump claimed Pope Francis questioned his faith after the leader of the Catholic Church said that Christians should seek to build bridges, not walls.
While other administration officials have traveled overseas since Trump took office, he has thus far preferred to conduct meetings with foreign leaders in the United States, either at the White House or his resort Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida.
