Pope Leo took on Trump after a quiet 10 months in the role. Here’s why

NewsWorldEuropePope Leo took on Trump after a quiet 10 months in the role. Here’s whyPopes have long been a moral voice on the global stage, but have generally remained neutral in world conflicts – until nowJoshua McElwee Friday 17 April 2026 11:59 BSTBookmarkCommentsGo to commentsBookmark popoverRemoved from bookmarksClose popover{"translations":{"comments":"Go to comments","share":"Share","copyLink":"Copy link","bookmark":"Bookmark","removeBookmark":"Remove bookmark"},"showComments":true,"showBookmark":true,"articleId":"b2959721","articleMeta":{"url":"https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/pope-leo-trump-iran-africa-tour-b2959721.html","title":"Pope Leo took on Trump after a quiet 10 months in the role. Here’s why"}}CloseJD Vance says Pope Leo should be careful when speaking on theologyOn The Ground newsletter: Get a weekly dispatch from our international correspondentsGet a weekly dispatch from our international correspondentsGet a weekly international news dispatchEmail*SIGN UPI would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our Privacy notice{"className":"sc-1ge0fwe-0","newsletterData":{"regSourceNewsletter":"IND_On_The_Ground_Newsletter","regTitle":"On The Ground","subscriptionGroup":"on_the_ground","subscriptionGroupId":"14806361-6435-4d19-b06e-05326605fb01","pathPrefix":["/news/world/europe","/news/world/middle-east","/news/world/australasia","/news/world/africa","/asia"],"associatedAuthors":["Bel Trew","Sam Kiley"],"title":"On The Ground newsletter: Get a weekly dispatch from our international correspondents","mobileTitle":"Get a weekly international news dispatch","lengthenedMobileTitle":"Get a weekly dispatch from our international correspondents","imageSrc":"https://static.independent.co.uk/static-assets/images/newsletters/onTheGround1_1.png","newsletterKey":"receiveOnTheGround","regSourceSection":"Europe","regSourceMethod":"NSCs"}}Pope Leo has debuted a notably more assertive speaking style during his four-...