Le pape Léon XIV intensifie les appels du Vatican à un désarmement nucléaire face à l'expiration du traité New START
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"La situation actuelle exige que tout soit fait pour éviter une nouvelle course aux armements qui menacerait davantage la paix entre les nations."
L'article retrace l'évolution de la doctrine et des prises de position du Saint-Siège contre l'arme nucléaire depuis 1945, soulignant une continuité du magistère papal jusqu'au pape Léon XIV. Face à une nouvelle dégradation de la situation au Moyen-Orient (Iran/Israël) et à l'expiration imminente du traité New START entre les États-Unis et la Russie, Léon XIV réaffirme avec vigueur les principes d'éthique, de responsabilité et de dialogue comme seuls garants de la paix mondiale. Ce positionnement s'inscrit dans un contexte où la logique de dissuasion nucléaire et la hausse des budgets militaires exacerbent la défiance internationale et menacent l'équilibre stratégique. Le Vatican, en s'appuyant sur une autorité morale, met l'accent sur l'immoralité intrinsèque de la simple possession d'armes nucléaires et poursuit une diplomatie de plaidoyer international, destinée à influencer les décideurs politiques et l'opinion publique. La condamnation récurrente de la course aux armements et l'appel à une transformation morale de l'humanité apparaissent comme une tentative de repositionner la sécurité internationale sur des valeurs de justice, de fraternité et de bien commun, au moment où l'ordre nucléaire international est fragilisé. L'impact de ces prises de parole est démultiplié par la concomitance de crises aiguës (Iran/Israël, fin du New START), accentuant la centralité du Vatican comme acteur d’influence morale dans la gouvernance globale du désarmement.
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By Andrea Tornielli
Since the tragedy caused by the atomic bombings of Japan in August 1945, the Church has reflected on the risk of humanity destroying itself.
In his Christmas Radio Message of 1955, Pius XII spoke of the nuclear threat, explaining that “there will be no cry of victory, but only the inconsolable weeping of humanity, which will desolately contemplate the catastrophe brought about by its own folly.” In the encyclical Pacem in terris, published immediately after the Cuban Missile Crisis, John XXIII stated with regard to atomic weapons: “Human beings live under the nightmare of a hurricane that could be unleashed at any moment with unimaginable violence. Weapons exist; and while it is difficult to believe that there are people capable of assuming responsibility for the destruction and suffering that a war would cause, it cannot be ruled out that an unforeseen and uncontrollable event may spark the fuse that sets the war machine in motion.”
In June 1968, Pope Paul VI declared: “We again express and implore this hope, in the name of all humanity—for a total ban on nuclear weapons and for general and complete disarmament.” Meanwhile, in February 1981 in Hiroshima, John Paul II cried out: “Our future on this planet, exposed as it is to the risk of nuclear annihilation, depends on one factor alone: humanity must undergo a moral transformation. At this moment in history, there must be a general mobilization of all men and women of good will. Humanity is called to take a further step forward, a step toward civilization and wisdom.” In May 2010, Benedict XVI stated: “I encourage initiatives aimed at progressive disarmament and the creation of nuclear-weapon-free zones, with a view to their complete elimination from the planet.”
From Hiroshima in November 2019, Pope Francis recalled that “the use of atomic energy for purposes of war is, today more than ever, a crime not only against human beings and their dignity, but against any possible future in our common home.” He added: “The use of atomic energy for purposes of war is immoral, just as the possession of nuclear weapons is immoral, as I said two years ago. We will be judged for this. New generations will rise as judges of our failure if we spoke of peace but did not achieve it through our actions among the peoples of the earth. How can we speak of peace while we build new and formidable weapons of war? How can we speak of peace while we justify certain illegitimate actions with rhetoric of discrimination and hatred?”
Pope Leo has continued along the path traced by his predecessors’ magisterium. On 14 June 2025, at the end of the Jubilee Audience, he said: “The situation in Iran and Israel has seriously deteriorated, and at such a delicate moment I wish to renew a strong appeal to responsibility and reason. The commitment to building a safer world, free from the nuclear threat, must be pursued through respectful encounter and sincere dialogue, in order to build a lasting peace founded on justice, fraternity, and the common good. No one should ever threaten the existence of another.”
Just over a month later, in a message for the 80th anniversary of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, he wrote: “True peace requires the courage to lay down arms, especially those capable of causing an indescribable catastrophe. Nuclear weapons offend our common humanity and betray the dignity of creation, whose harmony we are called to safeguard.” On 6 August, at the General Audience, recalling the devastation caused in Japan by nuclear devices, he issued this appeal: “Despite the passage of years, those tragic events remain a universal warning against the devastation caused by wars and, in particular, by nuclear weapons. I hope that in today’s world, marked by grave tensions and bloody conflicts, the illusory security based on the threat of mutual destruction will give way to the instruments of justice, the practice of dialogue, and trust in fraternity.”
The current Successor of Peter returned to the issue in his Message for the 2026 World Day of Peace, stating: “In the relationship between citizens and governments, it is even considered a fault not to prepare adequately for war, to respond to attacks, and to react to violence. Far beyond the principle of legitimate defense, at the political level this oppositional logic is the most current feature of a global destabilization that is becoming more dramatic and unpredictable by the day. Not by chance, repeated appeals to increase military spending and the resulting policy choices are presented by many leaders as justified by the danger posed by others. Indeed, the deterrent force of power, and nuclear deterrence in particular, embody the irrationality of relations between peoples based not on law, justice, and trust, but on fear and the dominance of force.”
At the end of the audience on 4 February 2026, Pope Leo XIV declared: "Tomorrow marks the expiry of the New START Treaty signed in 2010 by the Presidents of the United States and the Russian Federation, which represented a significant step in containing the proliferation of nuclear weapons. In renewing my encouragement for every constructive effort in favour of disarmament and mutual trust, I urgently call for this instrument not to be abandoned without seeking to ensure its concrete and effective follow-up. The current situation requires that everything possible be done to avert a new arms race that would further threaten peace among nations. It is more urgent than ever to substitute the logic of fear and distrust with a shared ethos capable of guiding choices towards the common good and to make peace a treasure to be cherished by all."
Finally, in a post from the official Pontifex account on 5 March 2026, Pope Leo wrote: “Let us pray together that nations may move toward effective disarmament, particularly nuclear disarmament, and that world leaders may choose the path of dialogue and diplomacy rather than violence.”
These are the statements of the Pontiff, who continues to call for the dismantling of all existing nuclear weapons capable of destroying all humanity.