London, Apr 11 : Caroline Kennedy's potential appointment as US Ambassador to the Vatican has been blocked by the Vatican.

Vatican sources told Il Giornale that her support for abortion disqualified Kennedy and other Roman Catholics; President Barack Obama had been seeking to appoint.

Obama was reportedly seeking to reward Kennedy for her support to his election bid, The Telegraph reported.

She had been poised to replace Hillary Clinton as New York senator, but dropped out amid criticism that she lacked enough experience for the job.

The Italian paper said that the Vatican strongly disapproved of Obama's support for abortion and stem cell research.

The impasse over the ambassadorial appointment threatens to cloud his meeting with the Pope during a G8 summit in Itay in July.

Kennedy, 53, has said that she supports abortion. Raymond Flynn, a former US Ambassador to the Vatican, said earlier this week that Kennedy would be a poor choice.

"It's imperative, it's essential that the person who represents us to the Holy See be a person who has pro-life values. I hope the President doesn't make that mistake," he told the Boston Herald.

"She said she was pro-choice. I don't assume she's going to change that, which is problematic," he added.

Meanwhile, the White House has refused to comment on the reports. (ANI)