Pope Leo seeks to defuse tensions with Trump, says not trying to debate him

Pope Leo sought ⁠to downplay his feud ⁠with US President Donald Trump on Saturday, ⁠saying reporting about comments he has made so far during his Africa tour “has not been accurate in all its aspects”.

Speaking to reporters in English aboard his flight to Angola for the third leg of his ambitious 10-day Africa tour, the first US pope said comments ‌he made two days earlier in Cameroon decrying that the world was being “ravaged by a handful of tyrants” were not aimed at Trump.

That speech, said Leo, “was prepared two weeks ago, well before the president ever commented on myself and on the message of peace that I am promoting”.

Vice-President J.D. Vance, who had criticised the pope’s remarks last week, welcomed his latest comments.

“I am grateful to ⁠Pope Leo for saying this,” Vance posted on social media. “While the media narrative constantly gins up conflict – and yes, real disagreements have happened and will happen – the reality is often much more complicated.”

Last Sunday, as Leo prepared to embark on his tour, Trump called him “WEAK on ‌Crime, and terrible for Foreign Policy” in a social media post. Trump also posted ⁠an artificial intelligence-generated image ⁠of himself as a Jesus-like figure, drawing widespread criticism even from some religious conservatives who typically support him.