Washington: US President Donald Trump launched a scathing social media broadside against Pope Leo XIV on Monday morning, demanding that the first American-born pontiff "stop catering to the Radical Left" and accusing him of maintaining a dangerously soft stance on international security.

The extraordinary public rebuke of the Catholic Church’s global leader marks a significant escalation in a deepening dispute centred on the ongoing conflict with Iran. The president utilised his social media platform to characterise the pontiff as "WEAK on Crime" and "terrible for Foreign Policy."

“I don’t want a Pope who thinks it’s OK for Iran to have a Nuclear Weapon," Trump wrote.

Theological and Political Friction

The president’s rhetoric continued shortly after Air Force One arrived near the capital following his departure from Florida. Addressing a group of reporters, Trump reiterated his dissatisfaction with the Holy See's recent diplomatic overtures.

“We don’t like a pope who says it’s OK to have a nuclear weapon,” Trump said, further labelling Leo XIV as a "very liberal person" and concluding, “I’m not a fan of Pope Leo.”

The tension follows a weekend address by the pope in which he condemned a “delusion of omnipotence” that he argued is sustaining the joint U.S.-Israeli military campaign in Iran. The pontiff urged world leaders to abandon hostilities in favour of a negotiated settlement.

Prayer Amidst Negotiations

The pope’s critical remarks were delivered during an evening prayer service at St. Peter’s Basilica. The service coincided with the commencement of direct, high-level negotiations between American and Iranian officials in Pakistan under the terms of a tenuous ceasefire.

While the U.S.-born pontiff refrained from identifying Trump or the United States specifically during his supplication, the content of his message was widely interpreted as a direct response to the administration’s focus on military dominance.

With inputs from AP