Pope decries the rise of AI-directed warfare, saying it leads to a spiral of annihilation

ROME (AP) — Pope Leo XIV on Thursday denounced how investments in artificial intelligence and high-tech weaponry were leading the world into a “spiral of annihilation,” as he called for peace in the Middle East and Ukraine during a visit to Europe’s largest university.

Leo’s speech at Rome’s La Sapienza University marked the first time a pope has visited the campus since Pope Benedict XVI called off a planned speech there in 2008 in the face of protests from faculty and students.

The American pope was warmly welcomed on Thursday, including by some of Sapienza’s newest students: Young Palestinians who arrived in Italy this week on a “humanitarian corridor” from Gaza to continue their studies at the university. The Italian government, working with Catholic organizations, has brought hundreds of Palestinians to study and receive medical care in Italy since the Israeli war against Hamas in Gaza began in 2023.

Leo met some of the Gaza students during a brief greeting at the campus chapel, and again after his speech in the main lecture hall of the university, which was founded by Pope Boniface VIII in 1303.

In his speech, Leo denounced how military spending had increased dramatically this year, especially in Europe, at the expense of education and healthcare, while “enriching elites who care nothing for the common good.”

He called for better monitoring of how AI was being developed and used in military and civilian contexts “so that it does not absolve humans of responsibility for their choices and does not exacerbate the tragedy of conflicts.”

“What is happening in Ukraine, in Gaza and the Palestinian territories, in Lebanon, and in Iran illustrates the inhuman evolution of the relationship between war and new technologies in a spiral of annihilation,” he said.

The pope said education and research must move instead in the opposite direction that values life “the lives of peoples who cry out for peace and justice!”

Leo has identified AI as one of the most critical matters facing humanity, especially its application in warfare and everyday life. They are themes he’s expected to explore more fully in his first encyclical, due to be released in the coming weeks.

Nada Rahim Jouda, 19, was one of the Gazans who met Leo, just two days after she arrived in Italy. She was still marveling at her new life studying business science in Rome, a city that she said was “like heaven for me.”

“Everything here is green and it’s not gray and troubles everywhere and miserable people in the streets,” she said.

But Jouda remains concerned for the family she left behind: her mother, recovering from leukemia, and younger sisters aged 17 and 13. Over the course of the war in Gaza, the family was forced to move four times, and her mother was unable to receive care or check-ups for her cancer.

“They all rely on me. I’m the only hope that they have,” she said.

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Pope Leo XIV, accompanied by, from left, Prefect of the Pontifical Household Archbishop Petar Rajič, Dean Antonella Polimeni, and his vicar for the city of Rome Cardinal Baldo Reina, visits the Città Universitaria (University City) at Sapienza University of Rome to meet with faculty and students at the institution's primary campus, one of the world's oldest and largest universities, Thursday, May 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)

Pope Leo XIV visits the Città Universitaria (University City) at Sapienza University of Rome to meet with faculty and students at the institution's primary campus, one of the world's oldest and largest universities, Thursday, May 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)

Pope Leo XIV is seen behind Arturo Martini's 1935 bronze statue of Minerva during a visit to Sapienza University of Rome's Città Universitaria campus to meet with faculty and students, Thursday, May 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)

Pope Leo XIV waves from his car as he leaves with his personal secretary, Monsignor Edgard Iván Rimaycuna Inga, right, after visiting the Città Universitaria (University City) at Sapienza University of Rome where he met with faculty and students at the institution's primary campus, one of the world's oldest and largest universities, Thursday, May 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)

Pope Leo XIV visits the Città Universitaria (University City) at Sapienza University of Rome to meet with faculty and students at the institution's primary campus, one of the world's oldest and largest universities, Thursday, May 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)

BANGOR, Maine (AP) — Vice President JD Vance is slated to make an appearance in Maine on Thursday to highlight the Trump administration’s efforts to combat fraud ahead of the state’s primary elections for several high-profile races.

Vance, who chairs the administration’s anti-fraud task force, is scheduled to deliver remarks at Bangor International Airport, the White House and the Maine Republican Party announced.

The vice president, who is seen as a potential GOP candidate for president in 2028, has been promoting the work of the task force as he has campaigned for Republican candidates in recent months. But Thursday's visit is the first that has been expressly billed as a stop to talk about the fraud-fighting efforts rather than the economic-focused message he's delivered in other visits.

Vance's pitch on President Donald Trump's economic policies has become tougher in the wake of the Iran war, which has driven up costs of gas and other goods, including food.

The visit to Maine comes after the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz said earlier in the year that he was calling for corrective action on alleged fraud in government health programs in Maine, a request characterized by the state’s Democratic governor, Janet Mills, as a “political attack.” It also comes as Maine residents begin voting ahead of the state’s primary elections on June 9, when they will be selecting candidates for governor, the U.S. Senate and the U.S. House.

Mills, who is prevented by term limit laws from running for a third term, recently dropped out of the Democratic primary race to challenge Republican Sen. Susan Collins, effectively ceding the nomination to progressive activist and oyster farmer Graham Platner. The seat is considered one of the most competitive in the nation and critical to Democratic hopes of reclaiming control of the chamber.

Republicans are bullish about their chances of taking back the 2nd Congressional District, which encompasses Bangor, after Democratic Rep. Jared Golden announced he wouldn’t be seeking reelection to the seat. Former Gov. Paul LePage, a Trump ally looking to make a political comeback, is the sole Republican vying for the nomination.

LePage appeared at Thursday's event, while Collins is scheduled to be in Washington.

Before Vance arrived, LePage told the crowd that if elected to represent Maine's 2nd Congressional District, he would work with the Trump administration to crack down on fraud in social safety programs, which he characterized as rampant in his state.

“The American people are done being taken for a ride. It’s time for the Maine people and the Maine taxpayer to be put front and center,” he told a crowd of a few hundred.

In the governor's race, seven Republicans and five Democrats are vying to replace Mills, who has sparred with the Trump administration over the issue of transgender athletes in high school sports.

Some Maine Democrats have used Vance’s appearance as an opportunity to boost their campaign messages. Progressive groups were planning a demonstration in Bangor at the time of the appearance, and Maine Secretary of State and governor candidate Shenna Bellows said she planned to speak at it.

Nirav Shah, the former Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention director who is now running for governor, said in an email to supporters and media that Vance is visiting Maine when costs of necessities such as heating oil and gas are surging in the state.

“That is the record JD Vance is bringing to Maine on Thursday. That is the record the Maine Republicans hosting him are ‘honored’ to celebrate,” Shah said.

Maine is a largely Democratic state, but Trump has proven popular in rural areas, and he has won the 2nd District in three consecutive elections. Mills had made her opposition to Trump a focus of her Senate run against Collins until she suspended her campaign in late April, clearing a path for Platner to take the nomination.

Vance paid a visit to northern New England in March 2025, when he went to Vermont on a family vacation. The appearance attracted protests near a ski resort.

Associated Press reporter Michelle L. Price in Washington contributed to this report.

Vice President JD Vance listens as Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz speaks to the media from the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on the White House campus, Wednesday, May 13, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

Vice President JD Vance arrives to speak to the media from the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on the White House campus, Wednesday, May 13, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

Vice President JD Vance speaks to the media from the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on the White House campus, Wednesday, May 13, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

Vice President JD Vance speaks to the media from the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on the White House campus, Wednesday, May 13, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)