Bush takes break from Iran push to see pope

By Jeremy Pelofsky and Philip Pullella

VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - U.S. President George W. Bush will meet Pope Benedict at the Vatican on Friday before resuming his campaign to rally European support for more sanctions against Iran.

Bush can expect the same warm welcome from the pope that he got from his old ally, Italy's Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, at their meeting on Thursday. In contrast, Bush was greeted with small anti-war protests in the streets of Rome.

The meeting with the German-born pontiff comes two months after Bush gave Benedict an effusive welcome at the White House. Benedict's predecessor John Paul II had a led a campaign against the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in 2003.

But the president and the pontiff see eye-to-eye on many moral issues, such as abortion, gay marriage and embryonic stem cell research.

In a break with normal etiquette, Benedict will meet Bush in a restored medieval tower to repay him for the warm White House reception on a papal visit to the United States in April, which was considered a major success for the pontiff.

The pope and Bush prayed together during the visit and there has been speculation they may do so again. They are due to walk from the tower to a statue of the Madonna in the Vatican Gardens after their private talks.

La Repubblica newspaper said not everyone in the Vatican was happy to see Benedict giving Bush special treatment. It quoted unnamed monsignors recalling that Bush did not heed the late John Paul's warnings against invading Iraq.

IRAN OVERTURES

Condemned by many Europeans for the U.S.-led war in Iraq, Bush has been trying to forge a diplomatic solution to the standoff with Tehran over its nuclear energy program while also making clear military options remain on the table.

Later on Friday in Paris, Bush will address the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, where he is expected to renew his call to prevent Tehran from obtaining a nuclear bomb and seek support for democracy in the Middle East.

To rally support for his Iran policy, Bush will see his close friend French President Nicolas Sarkozy on Friday and Saturday, followed by a stopover in London on Sunday and Monday where he will confer with British Prime Minister Gordon Brown.

"All of us ... need to be sending the same message to the Iranians, which is verifiably suspend your enrichment program or else you will face further sanctions and further isolation," Bush said after meeting Italian premier Silvio Berlusconi.

The Italian leader offered Bush help in easing tensions with Tehran by using his country's "inside" knowledge of Iran thanks to their long-established and extensive trade links.

Such business links have also made it more difficult to present a united front on Iran sanctions.

"This is always a problem for countries when their commercial ties sometimes seem to be at variance with their national security requirements," Bush's national security adviser, Stephen Hadley, told reporters.