Pope Leo XIV said he is pleased that the United States and Iran have reached a memorandum of understanding to end the monthslong war.

"I welcome with satisfaction the reaching of an agreement between the Islamic Republic of Iran and the United States of America, which will be signed on Friday, as an encouraging result of patient work in dialogue and negotiation," Leo wrote in a post on X. "I express my gratitude to the countries that have worked to facilitate a meeting between the parties and to make this agreement possible.

"I hope that the agreement may help strengthen mutual trust, security, and stability in the Middle East, promoting paths of dialogue and cooperation among peoples."

The Pope had been a critic of the war, earning the ire of President Donald Trump.

"Well, the Pope would rather talk about the fact that it's OK for Iran to have a nuclear weapon, and I don't think that's very good," Trump said in May. "I think he's endangering a lot of Catholics and a lot of people.

"But I guess if it's up to the Pope, he thinks it's just fine for Iran to have a nuclear weapon."

Trump has labeled Leo "weak" on crime and "terrible" on foreign policy and accused him of "catering to the radical left."

Leo said he had always been against nuclear weapons.

"I simply hope to be listened to because of the value of the word of God," he said.

Leo has issued consistent calls for peace and dialogue and has denounced the use of religious justification for war.

In April, he called Trump's threat to annihilate Iranian civilization "truly unacceptable."