The Obama administration is reportedly seeking the Vatican's help in negotiating the release of three American prisoners in Iran.
According to Fox News, Washington and the Vatican have already engaged in talks for the past few months concerning the American prisoners, and now that Pope Francis is visiting Washington and two other US cities this week, the Obama administration is hoping to talk to Vatican officials on how to coordinate their efforts in trying to secure the release of the American prisoners in Iran.
This follows a meeting initiated by Pope Francis between President Barack Obama and Cuban leader Raul Castro. The Pope earlier wrote to the two leaders and asked them to try and repair the broken bond between their two countries. The mediation was a success, with Cuba agreeing to release American prisoner Alan Gross as a result of their talks.
Analysts noted that Pope Francis can wield some influence over Castro since they are both Catholics, but they said it's a different case entirely in Iran since the country is run by Muslims.
However, during the Pope's meeting with influential Iranian women last February, he was able to convince them to help improve ties between the US and Iran.
Shahindokht Molaverdi, the vice president for Women and Family Affairs in the cabinet of Iran President Hassan Rouhani, even told the Catholic publication Crux that "certainly this pope has an ability to bring people together, which can also influence governments."
The remaining American prisoners in Iran are Christian pastor Saeed Abedini, former Marine Amir Hekmati, and Washington Post journalist Jason Rezaian. The status of their release remains as unclear, especially now that the Iran nuclear deal is set to be implemented.
Lawmakers said the Obama administration should have demanded the release of the prisoners as part of the nuclear deal. However, both the State Department and the White House disagreed with the plea, saying the two issues should not be linked.
