Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has criticised comments made by U.S. President Donald Trump about Pope Leo XIV, calling the remarks “unacceptable” amid growing international reaction.
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Trump had sharply criticised the pontiff in a post on Truth Social, accusing him of being “weak on crime and terrible for foreign policy.” Speaking later to reporters, the U.S. president added that he was “not a big fan” of the head of the Catholic Church.
Meloni responded by emphasising the Pope’s role as a moral voice advocating peace.
“The Pope is the head of the Catholic Church, and it is right and normal for him to call for peace and to condemn every form of war,” she said in a statement.
Political allies at odds
Meloni, a practising Catholic who leads a right-wing coalition government in Italy, is widely regarded as a political ally of Trump. Her criticism followed pressure from Italian opposition parties, which had accused her of taking too long to respond to the president’s remarks.
Another member of her governing coalition, Matteo Salvini, leader of the populist League party, also criticised the attack, saying that targeting the Pope “doesn’t seem like a useful or intelligent thing to do.”
The exchange comes as tensions grow between Trump and the Vatican over the ongoing conflict involving Iran. Pope Leo has been outspoken in urging de-escalation and calling for an end to the war.
Pope avoids direct confrontation
Speaking to journalists while travelling to Algeria during an 11-day visit to Africa — his second major foreign trip since being elected last year — the Pope said he did not intend to engage directly with Trump.
“I don’t want to get into a debate,” he said, adding that his role was to promote peace rather than act as a political figure.
The pontiff also said he had “no fear” of the Trump administration and would continue speaking out against war.
“Too many people are suffering in the world today. Too many innocent people are being killed,” he said. “Someone has to stand up and say there is a better way.”
In a later speech, Pope Leo criticised what he described as repeated violations of international law and warned against “neocolonial tendencies,” while urging world leaders to uphold justice and solidarity.
Trump doubles down
Despite the backlash, Trump intensified his criticism on Monday, saying he would not apologise to what he described as a “very weak” Pope.
In his Truth Social post, Trump suggested that the pontiff had been elected because he was American and that Vatican officials believed this would help manage relations with the U.S. president.
“If I wasn’t in the White House, Leo wouldn’t be in the Vatican,” he wrote.
Speaking to reporters, Trump also claimed the Pope was overly liberal and criticised his approach to crime and nuclear threats, appearing to refer to Iran’s nuclear ambitions.
Wider reaction from Catholic figures
Trump’s remarks have prompted criticism among Catholic commentators and scholars.
Italian Catholic historian Massimo Faggioli said the comments represented an unusually direct attack on the papacy by a world leader.
“Not even Hitler or Mussolini attacked the Pope so directly and publicly,” he said.
Pope Leo has repeatedly condemned violence in global conflicts and urged diplomatic solutions, including in the Middle East. He previously criticised Trump’s threat to destroy Iranian civilisation as “truly unacceptable.”
The pontiff has also challenged the administration’s immigration policies, questioning whether those supporting strict enforcement measures could still describe themselves as “pro-life.”
Pope Leo is widely viewed as continuing the humanitarian approach of his predecessor, Pope Francis, who clashed with Trump during the 2016 U.S. presidential campaign over immigration.
About 20% of Americans — more than 70 million people — identify as Catholic, including U.S. Vice-President JD Vance.
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Adapted by ASEAN Now. Source 14 April 2026
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