Pope Leo XIV says it is ‘not in my interest at all’ to negotiate with Donald Trump
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Pope Leo XIV said on Saturday that “I am not at all interested” in arguing with US President Donald Trump about the war in Iran but will continue to preach peace.
Leo spoke to journalists on board the papal plane flying from Cameroon to Angola on the sixth day of his 11-day trip, to four countries in Africa.
He spoke about the ongoing saga of Trump’s criticism of his message of peace, which has made headlines this week. But the Pope again tried to set the record straight, insisting that his preaching is not directed at Trump but reflects the Gospel message of peace.
“There was some narrative that was not accurate in all its aspects, but because of the political situation that was created when, on the first day of the trip, the president of the United States commented something about me,” he said.
“A lot of what has been written since then has been more commentary, trying to interpret what has been said.”
US President Donald Trump is facing a backlash from politicians and Christians after he engaged in a war of words with the Pope over the Iran war and posted an AI-edited photo of him as a Jesus-like figure.
Trump launched criticism on his social network Truth Social on the night of April 12, when he criticized Leo’s preaching about peace as a war on Iran – which was launched by Israel and the US on Feb. 28 – continues.
Trump has accused Leo of being soft on crime and cozying up to the left, saying America’s first pope owes his election to Trump.
Leo has issued consistent calls for peace and dialogue, and has criticized the use of religious justifications for war. Specifically, he called Trump’s threat to wipe out Iranian civilization “absolutely unacceptable.”
The Vatican emphasized that when Leo preaches peace, he is talking about all the wars that are destroying the planet, not just the conflict in Iran. For example, the Russian Orthodox Church has justified Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine as a “holy war.”
Speaking to journalists on Saturday, Leo directly referred to his words earlier this week at a peace meeting in Bamenda, Cameroon. The city is the epicenter of the apartheid conflict that has raged for nearly a decade in the western and anglophone region of the country.
Leo said his speech, in which he blasted “a handful of dictators” who were destroying the Earth through war and exploitation, was written two weeks ago, long before Trump’s criticism began.
US President Donald Trump defended his criticism of Pope Leo on the Iran war, saying, ‘I have the right to disagree.’ Reverend Michael Coren says it is ‘never before’ to see a pope and a president disagree on an issue until now.
“However, as it happened, it was looked at as if I was trying to argue with the president again, which does not agree with me at all,” he said.
However, looking ahead, the Pope said he will continue to preach the Gospel.
“Mainly I am coming to Africa as a priest, as the head of the Catholic Church to be with him, I will celebrate together, encourage and accompany all Catholics throughout Africa,” he said.
Leo drew attention to the upcoming reading of the liturgy about what it means to be a Christian and to follow Christ, to promote brotherhood and brotherhood, “but also to seek ways to promote justice in our world, to promote peace in our world.”
