‘Not in my interest at all’ to debate Trump: Pope Leo says remark on ‘handful of tyrants’ not directed at US Prez

Pope Leo XIV on Saturday made his intentions clear regarding what is being seen as a feud with US President Donald Trump. The US pontiff said that it was “not at all” in his interest to be even as several media reports may have speculated so.

He also clarified that his recent remarks in Cameroon decrying a “handful of tyrants” was not directed at Trump as the speech he delivered was prepared two weeks ago, before the US President launched a series of attacks on the US pontiff over his peace message on the ongoing West Asia conflict.

“As it happens, it was looked at as if I was trying to debate the president, which is not in my interest at all,” the pontiff said, as quoted by news agency Reuters. The pontiff made the remarks during his media interaction aboard his flight to Angola for the third leg of his ambitious 10-day Africa tour.

“There’s been a certain narrative that has not been accurate in all of its aspects, but because of the political situation created when, on the first day of the trip, the president of the United States made some comments about myself,” he said.

“Much of what has been written since then has been more commentary on commentary, trying to interpret what has been said,” he added, according to an AP report.

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Trump had called Pope Leo “WEAK on Crime, and terrible for Foreign Policy” last week and had also shared an AI-generated image of himself appearing as Jesus, a post that was later taken down following criticism from even some religious conservatives who typically support him. The US President had for what he said on the US pontiff.

Pope Leo had responded: “I’m not afraid of the Trump administration or of speaking out loudly about the message of the Gospel, which is what the Church works for.”

Pope Leo has long criticised the ongoing Iran-US conflict, calling for for peace and dialogue, and denouncing religious justification of war.