One year into his pontificate, Pope Leo XIV — born Robert Prevost and the first American to lead the Catholic Church — has made peace and human dignity the defining pillars of his papacy, which began on 8 May 2025. The pope has openly condemned the wars in Gaza and Ukraine, clashing directly with U.S. President Donald Trump after criticising American and Israeli military action against Iran; Trump has called Leo "terrible for Foreign Policy," while the pope countered that his remarks should not be read as a personal attack. Beyond armed conflict, Leo has championed the rights of migrants, the poor, and the marginalised — comparing the treatment of refugees unfavourably to that of household pets following an April 2026 visit to Africa — and has raised alarms about artificial intelligence threatening human creativity and dignity, warning that social media algorithms undermine authentic dialogue.