In his first Sunday message from "St. Peter" Square after his election, Pope Leo XIV called on the major world powers to never again have war, ANSA reported, quoted by BTA.
The new pope, elected on May 8, called "for true and lasting peace" in Ukraine, for a ceasefire in Gaza and the release of all Israeli hostages.
Pope Leo XIV also welcomed the ceasefire between India and Pakistan and said he was praying to God to grant the world the "miracle of peace".
"Brothers and sisters, the immense tragedy of the Second World War ended 80 years ago, on May 8, after claiming 60 million victims. In today's dramatic scenario of a third world war in parts, as Pope Francis used to say, I too address the great powers of the world with an increasingly urgent appeal: never again war," the pontiff said.