VATICAN CITY — U.S. Vice President JD Vance met Saturday with the Vatican’s No. 2 official amid tensions over the U.S. crackdown on migrants, with the Holy See reaffirming good relations but noting “an exchange of opinions” over current international conflicts, migrants and prisoners.

Vance, a Catholic convert, met with the secretary of state, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, and the foreign minister, Archbishop Paul Gallagher, in the Apostolic Palace. There was no indication he met with Pope Francis, who has sharply cut back official duties during his recovery from pneumonia.

Vance’s office said he and Parolin “discussed their shared religious faith, Catholicism in the United States, the plight of persecuted Christian communities around the world and President (Donald) Trump’s commitment to restoring world peace.”

The Holy See has responded cautiously to the Trump administration while seeking to continue productive relations in keeping with its tradition of diplomatic neutrality.

It has expressed alarm over the administration’s crackdown on migrants and cuts in international aid while insisting on peaceful resolutions to the wars in Ukraine and Gaza.

Those concerns were reflected in the Vatican statement, which said the talks were cordial and that the Vatican expressed satisfaction with the administration’s commitment to protecting freedom of religion and conscience.

“There was an exchange of opinions on the international situation, especially regarding countries affected by war, political tensions and difficult humanitarian situations, with particular attention to migrants, refugees and prisoners,” the statement said. “Finally, hope was expressed for serene collaboration between the state and the Catholic Church in the United States, whose valuable service to the most vulnerable people was acknowledged.”

The reference to “serene collaboration” appeared to refer to Vance’s assertion that the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops was resettling “illegal immigrants” in order to get federal funding. Top U.S. cardinals have pushed back strongly against the claim.

“It is clear that the approach of the current U.S. administration is very different from what we are used to and, especially in the West, from what we have relied on for many years,” Parolin told La Repubblica daily on the eve of Vance’s visit.

As the U.S. pushes to end the war in Ukraine, Parolin reaffirmed Kyiv’s right to its territorial integrity and insisted that any peace deal must not be “imposed” on Ukraine but “is built patiently, day by day.”

Vance was spending Easter weekend in Rome with his family and attended Good Friday services in St. Peter’s Basilica after meeting with Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni. On Saturday, after introducing his family to Parolin, the Vances got a private tour of the Sistine Chapel and later visited Rome’s botanic garden, where one of his sons was seen in a plastic gladiator costume that is popular among Italian kids.

It wasn’t immediately clear where they would celebrate Easter. Francis, for his part, indicated he hoped to attend Easter Mass that usually draws thousands to St. Peter’s Square, according to the official Mass booklet and liturgical plans released Saturday.

Francis and Vance have tangled sharply over migration and the Trump administration’s plans to deport migrants en masse. Francis has made caring for migrants a hallmark of his papacy and his progressive views on social justice issues have often put him at odds with members of the more conservative U.S. Catholic Church.

Francis also changed church teaching to say that capital punishment is inadmissible in all cases. After a public appeal from Francis just weeks before Trump took office, President Joe Biden commuted the sentences of 37 of the 40 people on federal death row. Trump is an outspoken proponent of expanding capital punishment.