Pope Leo XIV warned that war was becoming fashionable again —blaming the ambitions of belligerent states and the erosion of diplomacy—as global military tensions continue rising.
Speaking to diplomats at the Vatican in his first New Year message, the U.S.-born pontiff lamented the weakness of multilateral institutions and said dialogue was increasingly being replaced by a
diplomacy based on force.
Without naming Washington directly, Leo said rising tensions in regions such as the Caribbean and the Pacific were a serious concern, pointing in particular to Venezuela, where U.S. forces have recently seized the country’s president. His remarks came hours after U.S. president Donald Trump announced impending land operations against drug cartels following maritime attacks.
The pontiff warned that the post-Second World War principle prohibiting the use of force to violate borders had been severely undermined and said peace was increasingly pursued through weapons rather than dialogue.
He also cautioned against a renewed global arms race, especially involving artificial intelligence and condemned attacks on civilians, hospitals and infrastructure as grave violations of international humanitarian law.
