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Article snippet: ■ Pope Francis welcomed President Trump to the Vatican on Wednesday for the first face-to-face meeting of two leaders with contrasting visions. ■ For Mr. Trump, the audience in the Vatican caps a tour of the ancestral homes of three of the world’s great monotheistic religions. ■ For Francis, it was a chance to welcome a second American leader, after President Barack Obama paid his respects in 2014. Security was tight in Rome for President Trump’s visit to Pope Francis. Rome’s city center has been under intense surveillance, with additional cameras installed and hundreds of policemen sent to patrol roads that Mr. Trump’s motorcade might use. Roads were cordoned off and city buses diverted in the area around the United States ambassador’s residence, where Mr. Trump was staying, in an affluent northern section of Rome. Around Vatican City and the Quirinal Hill, where Mr. Trump is scheduled to meet President Sergio Mattarella of Italy just before lunch, access was also limited to the presidential motorcade. Italy increased its security alert level soon after the Paris attacks in 2015, but even by relative standards, tensions were high. On Tuesday morning, a bomb disposal team rushed to Via della Conciliazione, the avenue leading to St. Peter’s Square, to check a dark bag that had been left near a flowerpot. It turned out to contain clothes and a map. Past presidential visits to Rome have prompted demonstrations and even riots, but President Trump’s presence was met w... Link to the full article to read more