Pompeo calls for pope to show 'courage' over China

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo revived a spat with the Vatican today during a visit to Rome, a month ahead of the US elections and hot on the heels of a diplomatic breach that experts see as an effort to win conservative Catholic votes. Mr Pompeo is not meeting Pope Francis because the pontiff avoids such audiences in campaign periods, a Vatican source said. Analysts say the pope has been angered by Mr Pompeo's public calls for a historic Vatican-China accord to be scrapped. Instead, Mr Pompeo spoke at a symposium organised by the Holy See's US embassy, where he renewed an appeal for the Vatican to take a stand against China, pushing a religious freedom theme used in Donald...