Pope Leo XIV reopens sealed papal apartment
In a significant move just under a week after his election, Pope Leo XIV has ordered the unsealing of the papal apartment in the Apostolic Palace.
The official reopening took place on 11 May, following the Regina Caeli prayer, in the presence of top Vatican officials, including Cardinal Kevin Farrell and Cardinal Pietro Parolin.
Sealed since the death of Pope Francis on 21 April, the apartment's fate remains uncertain, as Pope Leo XIV has yet to confirm whether he will live there.
The gesture, rich in symbolism, marks a key step in the transition of papal authority and raises questions about the new pontiff's approach to tradition and simplicity.
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AFP
30-05-2025
- AFP
Video showing Pope Leo XIV praising Burkina Faso's leader is AI-generated
'Pope Leo XIV Responds to Captain Ibrahim Traore /A message of Truth, Justice and Reconciliation,' read the caption of a video posted on Facebook. The video, published on May 15, 2025, shows the pope giving an address while holding two pieces of paper. Image Screenshot of the false Facebook post taken on May 26, 2025 'To His Excellency President Ibrahim Traoré, President of the Sovereign Nation of Burkina Faso, son of African soil, defender of his people, may grace and peace multiply for you through wisdom, courage and truth,' the pope appears to say at the beginning of the 17-minute clip. Included is an English transcript of the audio. The video appeared on X and Facebook accounts in Kenya, South Africa, and Nigeria. Robert Francis Prevost became Pope Leo XIV on May 8, 2025, after cardinals from around the globe elected him, in less than two days, to be the first US leader of the world's 1.4 billion Catholics (archived here). However, the posts claiming to feature a video of the pontiff responding to a letter from Traore are false. Altered video The movement of the Pope's lips appears to match the audio, and there are no visual inconsistencies in his appearance, which can be signs that a video has been altered using AI. However, the pontiff appears to mispronounce Traore's name in different ways in quick succession, calling him 'President Trayas' at 2'33' in the video and 'President Trayor' four seconds later – an unlikely occurrence if he delivered the speech. The English transcript (in red bold letters) partially obscures a line of French text, which indicates that the pope originally delivered an address at the Salle Paul VI audience hall at the Vatican (archived here). Image Screenshot showing the French text (circled orange) that indicates the location of the event, taken on May 29, 2025 A reverse image search using keyframes extracted from the video further shows that the original clip was from a press conference held on May 12, 2025, when the pope called for the release of imprisoned journalists and urged the world to 'avoid the paradigm of war' (archived here). The pope addressed journalists in Italian, not English, as portrayed in the altered clip. The altered clip was also posted on YouTube by Pan African Dreams, a channel that regularly publishes content about Traore. This was on May 17, 2025 – days before it circulated elsewhere on social media – and was identified as synthetic content that was digitally generated. The owners of the YouTube account also included a disclaimer. It reads: 'This video is a work of fiction inspired by the life of IBRAHIM TRAORÉ. While some elements are based on real events, the situations and dialogues described are entirely imaginary and do not reflect any actual events'. Image Screenshot showing the disclaimer attached to the altered video on YouTube An authentic English transcript of the original address published on the Vatican's website showed that the Pope did not mention Africa or Traore during the entire speech (archived here). AFP Fact Check extracted the audio from the altered clip and ran it through – an audio tool that looks for specific forensic traces left by voice generators. The result showed a 99 percent probability that the audio was generated with an AI tool. Image Screenshot of the results, taken on May 26, 2025 The Vatican media department has also denied that the Pope received a letter from Burkina Faso or delivered a public address responding to Traore (archived here). Traore became Burkina Faso's military leader after a coup in September 2022 amid growing anti-French sentiment in the Sahel region (archived here). He is a frequent topic of viral social media posts in which supporters cast him in a positive light, but observers say his online rise has been accompanied by a flood of misleading and false claims. More AFP fact-checks related to artificial intelligence can be found here.
Euronews
27-05-2025
- Euronews
Why Russia is unlikely to let the Vatican mediate Ukraine peace talks
The prospect of peace talks between Russia and Ukraine being mediated by Pope Leo XIV at the Vatican is unlikely due to the influence of Russian Orthodoxy and Moscow's mistrust of the Catholic Church, according to political analysts and religious figures. Shortly after being elected, Pope Leo XIV said that the Vatican could act as a mediator in global conflicts, without specifically mentioning Russia's war against Ukraine. He later confirmed it to Italy's Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, saying the Vatican was indeed willing to host the next round of negotiations to try to put an end the war between Russia and Ukraine. After Kyiv and Moscow's direct talks in Istanbul yielded almost no progress, US President Donald Trump also mentioned the Vatican as a possible venue, following a conversation with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin. According to a recent statement by the Vatican's Secretary of State, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the pontiff plans to "if necessary, provide the Vatican, the Holy See, as a direct meeting (place) between the two sides". Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy travelled to the Vatican earlier this month and met Pope Leo XIV following his inaugural Mass. Zelenskyy is in favour of peace talks between Kyiv and Moscow being held at the Vatican, Ukraine's foreign minister confirmed to Euronews last week. However, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov criticised the idea, saying that it would be "a bit inelegant for Orthodox countries to use a Catholic platform" for talks. Moscow's wariness of mediation by the Vatican predates Pope Leo XIV, according to Pasquale Ferrara, the director general for political affairs at Italy's foreign ministry, and a professor of diplomacy and negotiation at the LUISS University in Rome. "I don't think Putin sees the Vatican as having the necessary neutrality," Ferrara told Euronews. "This scepticism existed even under Pope Francis and is rooted in the long-standing coolness between the Russian Orthodox Church and the Catholic Church." That tension has deep historical roots, stretching back to the Great Schism of 1054, when Christianity split into the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches. In August 2024, the Ukrainian parliament passed a bill banning activities of religious organisations connected to Russia and those that have administrative centres there. The legislation specifically targets the activities of the Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate (UOC-MP), which is legally subordinate to the Russian Orthodox Church, the leading church in Russia and a close ally of the Kremlin, fully supporting Moscow's war in Ukraine. All UOC-MP communities were given nine months to fully break ties with the Russian church. Ukraine's Security Service accused a number of clergymen of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate of collaborating with the Krmelin and justifying Russian aggression. Over 100 UOC-MP clergy members have come under criminal investigation since the outbreak of the full-scale war, the Security Service of Ukraine said. Once a dominant religious group in Ukraine, the past few years have seen many Moscow Patriarchate communities switch allegiance to independent churches, namely the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Kyiv Patriarchate. Founded in 2018 as an institution representing Ukrainian Orthodoxy fully independent of Moscow, it was granted the tomos of autocephaly — a document signifying canonical independence — by Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople, the most senior priest of the Eastern Orthodox Church. The Moscow Patriarchate hasn't recognised the decision and later tried to portray the Ukrainian government's steps against the Moscow-linked church as "persecution of Christians." The head of the Russian Orthodox Church (ROC), Patriarch Kirill, has been an ardent supporter of the war and a vital ally for Putin. Patriarch Kirill's vocal support for Putin's war has drawn criticism from the likes of Pope Francis and was dubbed a 'heresy' by other religious authorities. Dubbed the Tobacco Metropolitan for his alleged profiteering off of duty-free cigarettes in the 1990s, Patriarch Kirill fiercely maintains his pro-war stance, blaming the invasion on "gay parades" and making unproven claims that Ukrainians have been "exterminating" Russian civilians in the Donbas. In early May 2022, attempts by Brussels to add Kirill to the EU's list of sanctioned Russian nationals led to tensions among European leaders after Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán blocked the move. The ROC's stance has seen some Orthodox Churches cut ties with the Moscow Patriarchate, including one in Amsterdam. Bishop Hlib Lonchyna, a Ukrainian Greek Catholic prelate, expressed his doubt about Russia's willingness to genuinely engage in peace talks or accept the Vatican as a mediator. "Pope Leo XIV has no influence over Russia. They don't recognise our Church at all," he told Euronews. The Vatican has a long history of mediating wars, conflicts and political disagreements, although it tends to work behind the scenes and avoid publicising its efforts. One of its greatest achievements in recent history was facilitating the talks between the US and Cuba in 2014 that ultimately resulted in the resumption of diplomatic relations. The Vatican has also often hosted far less secret diplomatic initiatives, such as when it brought together the rival leaders of war-torn South Sudan in 2019. The encounter was made famous by the image of Pope Francis kissing their feet to beg them to make peace. However, for the Kremlin, the idea of Pope Leo XIV mediating peace talks may be seen as an extension of the Catholic Church's Western legacy, according to Ferrara of the Italian foreign ministry. Ultimately, successful mediation depends less on the identity of the mediator and more on the parties' genuine willingness to seek peace, he said. "Russia has not shown the kinds of signals that would indicate a real desire to negotiate," Ferrara added. On 16 May, Russia and Ukraine held their first face-to-face discussions since shortly after Moscow's full-scale invasion. During the talks in Istanbul, the two sides agreed to exchange 1,000 prisoners of war each, in what is the biggest such swap to date. The discussions delivered no wider breakthrough on resolving Russia's war, and no further direct peace talks are scheduled, the Kremlin said last week. Moscow has had no issues with Ankara playing the host. Nonetheless, Honduran Cardinal Oscar Rodriguez Maradiaga said last week that he believed that the Vatican could still act as a mediator between Russia and Ukraine. "It is very difficult, yes, but everything is possible with Pope Leo XIV — he enjoys the trust of global leaders," he told the Italian newspaper La Stampa. Ferrara also said that the Vatican may have a role to play, despite the challenges. "We should not be too sceptical about the constructive role religion can play in building a new international order," he added. Spain has failed to obtain the necessary unanimity to elevate Catalan, Galician and Basque into official languages of the European Union, as several member states raised concerns over the administrative and legal implications of such an unprecedented move. The result materialised during a meeting of EU affairs ministers on Tuesday, where the issue was scheduled to be put to a formal vote. As the debate progressed, it became evident that the reservations in the room were enough to prevent consensus. "There was a large number of countries willing to support (the request), but there was a minority who asked for more time, and we decided to grant it," said Pilar Alegría, the chief spokesperson of the central government in Madrid. "We're going to continue working and discussing." The request dates back to 2023, when Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez secured the support of Catalan separatist lawmakers, who hold a small but crucial number of seats in the Spanish parliament, to form a minority government. As part of the investiture deal, Sánchez promised to bring to Brussels a proposal to amend Regulation 1/1958 and turn Catalan, Galician and Basque into official EU languages. The backing of regional parties has become more pressing after Sánchez unveiled a new budget with a steep hike in defence spending that needs the parliament's blessing. As of today, Regulation 1/1958 recognises 24 languages. The designation implies the translation of every legal act, including the daily publication of the official journal, and real-time interpretation during debates in the EU Council and the European Parliament. A first attempt to change the regulation was swiftly rejected in September 2023, despite Madrid offering to pay in full for the additional expenses. The fiasco prompted months of behind-the-scenes negotiations to convince the reluctant countries and secure the required unanimity. Spain asked for the issue to be put on the agenda on Tuesday morning, even if the arithmetic looked very uncertain in the lead up to the ministerial meeting. On arrival in Brussels, Joakim Strand, Finland's minister for European affairs, cast doubt over the request, arguing the issue was not "mature yet". "There are still some concerns that have been (raised) also by the Council legal service, and I think that's something we need to take very seriously," Strand told reporters. "I think linguistic diversity is important, and we're always constructive, and we want to continue the discussion." Sweden's Jessica Rosencrantz and Austria's Claudia Plakolm also highlighted the importance of respecting the EU's diversity, but echoed the concerns about the financial and legal implications that the triple designation would entail. The European Commission previously estimated the cost to be €132 million per year, with Catalan, Galician and Basque costing €44 million each. The assessment was preliminary, based on the past experience with Gaelic in Ireland. Spain's domestic settlement on language is unique in Europe. Under the country's constitution, enacted in 1978 after the end of the military dictatorship, the three languages gained co-official status in the regions where they are spoken and enjoy the same legal standing as Castilian. Catalan is spoken by more than 9 million people across Catalonia, Valencia and the Balearic Islands, as well as Andorra. Galician is a distant second, with around 2.5 million speakers in Galicia, the northwest corner of Spain. The Basque language or Euskara, which does not originate from Latin, is spoken by over 750,000 people in the Basque Country and Navarra, and also in the bordering areas of southern France. "This is not a matter of translating more or less documents, it is a matter of respecting the identity of European citizens," Catalonia President Salvador Illa told Euronews in February during an official visit to Brussels. "This is not, let's say, a political issue, or a political demand. I would put it from another angle. This is a fair measure from a linguistic point of view. There are 20 million citizens who speak these official languages."
Euronews
26-05-2025
- Euronews
Pope Leo XIV completes last ceremonial steps as new Bishop of Rome
Pope Leo XIV declared himself a Roman on Sunday, completing the final ceremonial steps in his role as the bishop of Rome. Wearing his formal red papal cape and brocaded stole, Pope Leo XIV recalled the words he had uttered from the loggia of St Peter's Basilica on the night of his election. The pontiff quoted St Augustine in saying, 'With you I am Christian, and for you, bishop.' 'By special title, today I can say that for you and with you I am Roman,' Leo said. Rome's Mayor Roberto Gualtieri welcomed Pope Leo XIV first at the steps to City Hall, noting that his May 8 election fell during a Holy Jubilee year, an event occurring every 25 years to invite pilgrims to Rome. The city underwent two years of traffic-clogging public works projects to prepare and expects to welcome upward of 30 million people in 2025. Pope Leo XIV felt a 'serious but passionate responsibility' to serve all Romans during the Holy Year and beyond. The first US-born pontiff formally took possession of the St John Lateran Basilica, which is Rome's cathedral and seat of the diocese, with an evening Mass attended by Roman priests and faithful. He then took the popemobile for a visit to St Mary Major, where he prayed before Pope Francis' tomb and an icon of the Virgin Mary beloved to many Roman faithful. Last week, the pontiff visited the St Paul Outside the Walls basilica. In his homily, Pope Leo XIV said he wanted to listen to them 'in order to learn, understand and decide things together.' One of the many titles that Pope Leo XIV assumed when he was elected 8 May was bishop of Rome — an honorific derived from the pontiff's role as the apostolic successor to Saint Peter, the founder of the Church. The symbolic possession of the four papal basilicas completes his inauguration as the Church's supreme pontiff. Given his responsibilities running the 1.4 billion-strong universal Catholic Church, the pontiff will likely delegate the day-to-day governance of the diocese of Rome to a vicar. On Sunday, Pope Leo XIV asked for prayers for China's Catholics to be in communion with the Holy See, as he made his first public remarks about one of the thorniest foreign policy issues facing his new pontificate. The pope recalled that the Catholic Church marked a special feast day on Saturday to pray for the church in China. Pope Leo XIV noted that on the feast day, 'in the churches and shrines in China and throughout the world, prayers have been raised to God as a sign of the solicitude and affection for Chinese Catholics and their communion with the universal church.' Speaking from his window during his noontime blessing, Leo prayed that Catholics in China and elsewhere 'obtain the grace to be strong and joyful witnesses of the Gospel, even in the midst of trials, to always promote peace and harmony.' Pope Leo XIV told the archbishop of Hong Kong, Cardinal Stephen Chow, that he had 'visited China several times and got to know the Chinese culture and reality,' according to the Fides missionary news agency, citing comments Chow made in his diocesan weekly newsletter after the conclave. Chow added that he expected Pope Leo XIV to follow Pope Francis' direction for the church in China. He said he had given Pope Leo XIV a small statue of Our Lady of Sheshan, a statue of the Madonna that is particularly venerated by Chinese faithful and is celebrated on the feast day, 24 May. Chow, a Jesuit, said he had implored Pope Leo XIV 'to not forget the church in China and the Chinese people,' according to the newsletter. The Vatican has been working for years to try to improve relations with China that were officially severed over seven decades ago when the Communist Party came into power under Mao Zedong. Relations had long been stymied over China's insistence on its exclusive right to name bishops as a matter of national sovereignty, while the Vatican insisted on the pope's exclusive right to name them as the supreme pontiff of the Church.
