Pope Leo urged US President Donald Trump’s administration on Tuesday not to try to oust Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro using military force.
Leo, the first US pope, said it would be better to attempt dialogue or impose economic pressure on Venezuela if Washington wants to pursue change there.
The Trump administration has been weighing options to combat what it has portrayed as Maduro’s role in supplying illegal drugs that have killed Americans. The socialist Venezuelan president has denied having any links to the illegal drug trade.
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Asked during a news conference about Trump’s threats to remove Maduro by force, Leo said: “It is better to search for ways of dialogue, or perhaps pressure, including economic pressure.”
The pope, speaking as he flew home from a visit to Turkey and Lebanon, his first overseas trip, added that Washington should search for other ways to achieve change “if that is what they want to do in the United States”.
Reuters reported last month that options under US consideration include an attempt to overthrow the Venezuelan leader, and that the US military is poised for a new phase of operations after a massive military build-up in the Caribbean and nearly three months of strikes on suspected drug trafficking boats off Venezuela’s coast.