Pope Leo slams leaders who ‘feed’ conflicts while millions go hungry

Hind Al Soulia - Riyadh - ROME — World leaders are “feeding” wars more readily than the hungry, Pope Leo XIV said on Monday, telling the UN food aid agency that global priorities were badly skewed.

Addressing the governing body of the UN World Food Program in Rome, Leo pressed governments to cut red tape and tear down obstacles that prevent assistance from reaching those in need after a severe funding shortfall by the United States and other countries.

Leo, who has been more outspoken on political issues in recent months, urged world leaders to increase their spending to combat hunger and not subject food aid to limits based ‌on geopolitical concerns.

Echoing a warning first voiced by late Pope Francis during a WFP visit a decade ago, Leo criticized political and administrative barriers that slow humanitarian aid while military spending continues unhindered.

“Whereas forms of aid and development projects are obstructed by involved and incomprehensible political decisions, skewed ideological visions and impenetrable customs barriers, weaponry is not,” he said. “In effect, conflicts are ‘fed’ more readily than people are nourished.”

The appeal comes as funding for food assistance has dropped sharply — by about 59% since 2022 — even as needs have surged, according to a recent WFP report.

“This reality reflects not only operational shortcomings but also a fundamental imbalance in political and moral priorities,” he said.

The WFP is the largest provider of food aid worldwide. Its biggest donor is the US, which announced a new $800 million contribution ⁠last week, following earlier cuts by President Donald Trump ‌that more than halved ‌planned US funding.

Leo, ‌who drew Trump’s ire earlier this year after criticizing ‌the Iran war, did not mention any specific leaders on Monday.

The pope lamented that the world’s humanitarian crises were being relegated to a “secondary place among international priorities.”

He said that countries “have increasingly allocated their resources toward ‌national security, economic growth and domestic stability, disregarding the close link between these issues and multilateral ⁠cooperation.”

Leo was ⁠welcomed to the WFP on Monday by Cindy McCain, who resigned as director of the agency earlier this year for health reasons.

The WFP, which won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2020, provided 15.6 billion daily rations to 121 million people in 2025, funded by $6.5 billion in private donations, according to the agency.

Leo described a fractured international order marked by mistrust, with countries prioritizing national interests over cooperation even as hunger fuels instability, migration and conflict.

Warning that the stakes go beyond humanitarian relief, the pope urged leaders to place human dignity at the center of decision-making.

“Every human person possesses an inherent and inalienable dignity that remains intact regardless of circumstance, condition or social status,” he said.