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Pope Leo said he is not interested in debating U.S. President Donald Trump, downplaying suggestions that recent remarks during his African tour were aimed directly at the American leader after a widely publicized row between the two.
Speaking to reporters while flying to Angola, the pope said, "As it happens, it was looked at as if I was trying to debate the president, which is not in my interest at all."
He said the speech in question had been prepared two weeks earlier, "well before the president ever commented on myself and on the message of peace that I am promoting."
Leo also said reporting on comments he made during the tour "has not been accurate in all its aspects."
On Thursday, the pontiff sharply criticized leaders who spend billions on wars and said the world was "being ravaged by a handful of tyrants" during his tour of African countries, but Trump was not mentioned.
Trump has repeatedly attacked Pope Leo in recent days and accused him of supporting Iran's push to secure a nuclear weapon.
Earlier this week, the U.S. president launched a series of verbal and social media attacks against the pope, including a post on Truth Social in which he said the pontiff was "WEAK on crime and terrible for Foreign Policy."
Trump also posted an AI-generated image of himself as a Jesus-like figure, drawing widespread criticism before the post was removed.
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