UNITED STATES President Donald Trump has intensified his criticism of Pope Leo XIV, accusing the pontiff of being “weak on crime” and “terrible for foreign policy” in a growing public feud tied to the US war with Iran.
In a remark to reporters and subsequent lengthy social media post on Sunday, April 12, Trump said he was “not a fan” of the Pope and took issue with his calls for de-escalation in the Middle East.
The president argued that he did not want “a Pope who thinks it’s OK for Iran to have a nuclear weapon,” while also criticising the pontiff’s views on US actions abroad, including Venezuela.
“We don’t like a Pope that’s going to say that it’s OK to have a nuclear weapon. … He’s a man that doesn’t think that we should be toying with a country that wants a nuclear weapon so they can blow up the world,” Trump reportedly told reporters, adding, “I’m not a fan of Pope Leo.”
In the subsequent X post, Trump insisted he was carrying out the mandate for which he was elected and accused the Pope of aligning with political opponents.
“I don’t want a Pope who thinks it’s OK for Iran to have a Nuclear Weapon. I don’t want a Pope who thinks it’s terrible that America attacked Venezuela, a country that was sending massive amounts of drugs into the United States and even worse, emptying their prisons, including murderers, drug dealers, and killers, into our country. And I don’t want a Pope who criticises the President of the United States because I’m doing exactly what I was elected, IN A LANDSLIDE, to do, setting Record Low Numbers in Crime, and creating the Greatest Stock Market in History,” he wrote.
Trump further questioned the Pope’s emergence, saying that “Leo should be thankful because, as everyone knows, he was a shocking surprise. He wasn’t on any list to be Pope and was only put there by the Church because he was an American, and they thought that would be the best way to deal with President Donald J. Trump.”
Trump’s comments followed recent remarks by Pope Leo XIV, who has repeatedly urged restraint and peace amid escalating tensions between the US and Iran.
I don’t fear Trump’s administration – Pope
Addressing journalists aboard a papal flight to Algeria at the start of an 11-day trip to Africa, the Pope, on Monday April 13, said he would not be drawn into a political confrontation.
“I have no fear of the Trump administration,” he said, adding that his message was rooted in the gospel and focused on peace and reconciliation rather than politics.
The Pope emphasised that his comments on global conflicts were not directed as personal attacks but as moral appeals. “We are not politicians… the message of the gospel is very clear: blessed are the peacemakers,” he said.
Pope Leo XIV has been a consistent critic of war rhetoric, previously condemning Trump’s warning that “an entire civilisation would die tonight” as “truly unacceptable.” He warned against what he described as a “delusion of omnipotence” driving conflicts, including the ongoing war involving Iran.
The Pope also criticised hardline US immigration measures, questioning whether policies he described as ‘inhuman’ align with pro-life values.
Mustapha Usman is an investigative journalist with the International Centre for Investigative Reporting. You can easily reach him via: musman@icirnigeria.com. He tweets @UsmanMustapha_M