Overview
- He used the Vatican's annual address to the diplomatic corps to lay out a consolidated foreign-policy and ethical agenda.
- He cautioned that dialogue-based multilateralism is giving way to a 'diplomacy of strength' and said post‑WWII norms against cross‑border force are being eroded.
- He argued that free expression in Western countries is narrowing under an 'Orwellian' language and defended conscience rights, rejecting a claimed right to abortion and backing refusals to participate in abortion, euthanasia or military service.
- He called for an immediate ceasefire in Ukraine, raised alarms over Gaza and violence in the West Bank, urged respect for the will and rights of the Venezuelan people, and flagged crises in Haiti, Sudan and Myanmar as well as a new AI-fueled arms race.
- Outlets reported that parts of the address were read as an implicit critique of U.S. actions and of President Donald Trump, though the United States was not named, and the text is being distributed for government review.