Pope Leo XIV embodies more than ever the commitment to peace and dialogue. Elected in May 2025, this first American-born pontiff has never ceased to remind that war is never a solution, but a tragedy for humanity. His firm refusal to endorse the conflict in Iran, even in the face of U.S. pressures, illustrates a clear line: that of diplomacy and dialogue, which echoes Algeria’s foreign policy, always determined to prioritize peaceful means to resolve international crises.
It all began last January. On January 9, 2026, in a speech addressed to the diplomatic corps accredited to the Holy See, Pope Leo XIV strongly denounced “a diplomacy based on force,” which replaces dialogue and consensus with threats and military intervention. He warned against a “zeal for war” that undermines post-World War II principles prohibiting the violation of borders by force. These remarks, delivered as tensions in the Middle East were intensifying, were perceived as a direct critique of the Trump administration’s directions. Less than two weeks later, on January 22, Pentagon officials summoned the apostolic nuncio to the United States, Cardinal Christophe Pierre, for a meeting that, according to sources reported by the U.S. press, took the form of a vehement warning: align the Church with American policy or risk tensions. The Holy See and the Pentagon denied any “threat” or “bitter lesson,” confirming only a discussion on international affairs. But the facts speak for themselves: the Pope did not budge an inch.
A few weeks later, when U.S. strikes against Iran began in late February, Leo XIV condemned these actions without ambiguity as “illegal and immoral.” In his Sunday Angelus, he amplified his criticism: “God does not listen to the prayers of those who make war” and “God blesses no conflict.” In response to President Trump’s recent threats to annihilate an “entire Iranian civilization,” the Sovereign Pontiff reacted firmly from Castel Gandolfo: “This is unacceptable.” He called on the faithful and people of goodwill to contact their elected officials to demand peace and dialogue. Despite the initial pressures in January, the Pope maintains his line: the war in Iran is not a fatality, but a collective failure that must be stopped through negotiation.
This courageous position places Leo XIV squarely in line with Algerian policy, which has always made diplomacy its primary tool for resolving conflicts. Algiers, faithful to its principles of non-interference, sovereignty, and dialogue, tirelessly advocates the peaceful path in regional and international crises, whether in the Sahel, Libya, or the Middle East. Algeria, the non-aligned nation par excellence, rejects bloc logic and military interventions, favoring mediations, multilateral forums, and negotiated solutions. As Algerian diplomacy has often recalled, “force resolves nothing durably; only dialogue builds peace.”