After Vatican visit, Blinken praises Pope Francis's work on LGBTQ rights

VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Wednesday praised Pope Francis for his work on LGBTQI issues after meeting the leader of the 1.4-billion-member Roman Catholic Church and other senior officials at the Vatican.

"The Secretary commended the Pope's commitment to advancing the basic rights and dignity of LGBTQI persons," U.S. State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said in a statement.

Francis famously said "who am I to judge?" about gay people at the start of his papacy in 2013, and last year allowed priests to bless members of same-sex couples, triggering a substantial conservative backlash.

However, he has faced intense criticism this year over the alleged use of a homophobic slur, for which his office issued a rare apology. In June, a student asked the pope to stop using offensive language towards the LGBTQI community.

Blinken saw Francis before the pope held his weekly audience in St. Peter's Square, and later met the Vatican's second-in-command, Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin, and the Vatican's foreign minister, Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher.

Blinken commented on the pope's stance on LGBTQI issues during the meeting with Parolin and Gallagher, Miller said.

He also discussed with them the situation in the Middle East, including the ceasefire in Lebanon, Russia's war on Ukraine and its effects on civilians, and jointly condemned political repression in Nicaragua and Venezuela, the spokesperson added.

The Vatican said Blinken met the pope, without elaborating.

Blinken visited the Vatican after taking part in a two-day meeting of G7 foreign ministers in central Italy, which ended on Tuesday with renewed messages of support for Ukraine and condemnation of Russian aggression.

(Reporting by Alvise Armellini; editing by Jonathan Oatis)