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Pope Leo vs Trump: A timeline of Pontiff's remarks on POTUS's policies on Iran, Venezuela, immigration
Pope Leo XIV has clashed indirectly with Donald Trump since his May 2025 induction, criticizing immigration raids, Iran war and Maduro capture.
Having the first US-born pontiff at Vatican City has, perhaps, not turned out as President Donald Trump would have hoped. Since being appointed Pope Leo XIV, the Chicago native has been at loggerheads with the Trump administration, often indirectly taking aim.
What began with criticism of the Trump's immigration raids as "inhuman," has since escalated into comments on the Iran war and the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro in a US Army Delta Force operation.
Undoubtedly, the duo has been at crosshairs, though indirectly, leading to an unusual situation where the White House and the Vatican find themselves on opposing ends.
In this article, we will look at the comments Pope Leo has made on the Trump administration since his May 2025 induction.
A Timeline Of Pope Leo's Criticism Of Trump: May 2025- Present
May 2025: Shortly after his May 8, 2025, election as the new Pope succeeding late Pope Francis, old comments Pope Leo made criticizing Vice President JD Vance surfaced.
But the day after his inauguration, on May 19, Pope Leo met with Vance, signaling a possible amicable relationship between the White House and the Vatican. Yet, things have only gone downhill since.
Also read: Donald Trump reveals his favourite thing to do in US-Iran war
November 5, 2025: As the Department of Homeland Security was conducting immigration raids in Minnesota, Pope Leo came up with what was then described as his "strongest yet" criticism of the Trump administration. The Pope called the raids "inhuman" and said "deep reflection" is needed.
January 9, 2026: A week after the January 3 capture of Venezuela's president, Nicolas Maduro, by US Forces in Venezuela, Pope Leo hit out at the Trump administration. He described the Trump administration's actions in Venezuela, condemning it as "diplomacy of force."
Also read: How Iran is making a mint from Donald Trump’s war
“The principle established after the Second World War, which prohibited nations from using force to violate the borders of others, has been completely undermined,” the Pope had said, adding that the "seal of war" is spreading rapidly.
February 18: Though not a direct comment, the Vatican took a big step against the Trump administration after it announced that it would not join the Trump-proposed Board of Peace in Gaza and is declining Trump's invitation for the same.
March 7: In another major update, Pope Leo named Italian Archbishop Gabriele Caccia, 68, a Vatican diplomat, as the new Vatican ambassador to Washington. Caccia faces the momentous task of negotiating relations between the two even as they continue to turn worse.
March 15: The Pope issued an address via the Vatican website calling for a ceasefire amid the US-Israel-Iran conflict affecting the Middle East. He said that "thousands of innocent people have been killed and countless others have been forced to flee their homes," and urged all parties to stop.
March 29: Pope Leo offered the most critical of his take on the Trump administration's war in Iran with Israel on Palm Sunday. In his address, Pope Leo criticized the war as a "spiral of violence" and warned that it could lead to further escalations.
