US President Donald Trump has renewed his criticisms of Pope Leo XIV, potentially complicating a relationship-mending visit that US Secretary of State Marco Rubio plans to make this week to the Vatican.
In an interview with conservative commentator Hugh Hewitt, Trump said the first American-born pontiff is helping Iran and also making the world less safe with his comments about the importance of not treating immigrants with disrespect.
“The pope would rather talk about the fact that it’s OK for Iran to have a nuclear weapon,” Trump said in the interview. “I don’t think that’s very good. I think he’s endangering a lot of Catholics and a lot of people.”
The pope, however, has not said Iran should obtain nuclear weapons. He’s called for more peace talks, and criticised war with Iran generally and Trump’s specific threats of mass civilian strikes.
Leo XIV also has emphasised that he’s reflecting biblical and church teachings, not speaking as a political rival to Trump.
Leo responded to Trump's latest criticism by calling out the US president's misrepresentation of his views. Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, the pontiff said the Catholic Church “for years has spoken out against all nuclear weapons, so there is no doubt there.”
He also doubled down on his insistence that his call for peace and dialogue in the US-Israeli war in Iran is biblically inspired.
“The mission of the church is to preach the Gospel, to preach peace. If someone wants to criticise me for announcing the Gospel, let him do it with the truth,” he added.
For his part, Rubio, a practicing Catholic, said Trump's recent criticisms were rooted in his opposition to Iran potentially obtaining a nuclear weapon, which he said could be used against millions of Catholics and other Christians. Rubio said the whole world should be opposed to that.
Tensions spill over into Italian politics
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, a long-time Trump ally, has taken exception to Trump’s comments about the pope.
Trump in return criticised her as his ire against NATO allies expands over what he sees as a lack of support for his country’s war efforts, most recently with the Pentagon announcing plans to pull thousands of troops out of Germany in the coming months.
In response to Trump's latest comments criticising the pope, Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said in a social media post that they were “neither acceptable nor helpful to the cause of peace.”
“I reaffirm my support for every action and word of Pope Leo; his words are a testament to dialogue, the value of human life, and freedom. This is a vision shared by our government, which is committed through diplomacy to ensuring stability and peace in all areas where conflicts exist,” wrote Rome’s top diplomat.
Rubio, who after this trip will have visited Italy or the Vatican at least three times in the past year, is also expected to meet with Meloni and Tajani on Friday.
