VATICAN CITY: Pope Leo XIV recalled his immigrant roots as he spoke out Friday against global inequality and injustice, including "unworthy" working conditions, in a speech to diplomats accredited to the Vatican.
The 69-year-old, who became the first US head of the Catholic Church on May 8, also highlighted climate change, migration and artificial intelligence as some of the world's key challenges.
"In this time of epochal change, the Holy See cannot fail to make its voice heard in the face of the many imbalances and injustices that lead, not least, to unworthy working conditions and increasingly fragmented and conflict-ridden societies," the pontiff said.
"Every effort should be made to overcome the global inequalities -- between opulence and destitution -- that are carving deep divides between continents, countries and even within individual societies."
The son of a father of French and Italian descent and a mother with Spanish origins, the Chicago-born pontiff recalled how "my own story is that of a citizen, the descendant of immigrants, who in turn chose to emigrate".
"All of us, in the course of our lives, can find ourselves healthy or sick, employed or unemployed, living in our native land or in a foreign country, yet our dignity always remains unchanged: it is the dignity of a creature willed and loved by God."
The pope, who spent around two decades as a missionary in Peru, added that "my own life experience, which has spanned North America, South America and Europe, has been marked by this aspiration to transcend borders in order to encounter different peoples and cultures".
He highlighted as "challenges of our time" issues including "migration, the ethical use of artificial intelligence and the protection of our beloved planet Earth".
Leo has made several calls for peace in his first week as pontiff, echoing his late predecessor, Pope Francis.
Within this context, he said there was "a need to give new life to multilateral diplomacy and to those international institutions conceived and designed primarily to remedy eventual disputes within the international community".
Citing traditional Catholic values, he emphasised the importance of "investing in the family, founded upon the stable union between a man and a woman".
He also encouraged "respect for the dignity of every person, especially the most frail and vulnerable, from the unborn to the elderly, from the sick to the unemployed, citizens and immigrants alike".
Although the audience was private, the audio of Leo's speech was relayed to journalists in the Vatican press office, with an official transcript provided.
Meeting diplomats, pope highlights inequality, injustice
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Meeting diplomats, pope highlights inequality, injustice

UPDATE 1-Russia attacks Ukraine with 700 drones after Trump vows to send more weapons

The attack was the latest in a series of escalating air assaults in recent weeks that have involved hundreds of drones in addition to ballistic missiles, straining Ukrainian air defenses at a perilous moment in the war, now in its fourth year.
Kyiv’s military downed almost all the drones but some of the six hypersonic missiles launched by Russia had caused unspecified damage, air force spokesperson Yurii Ihnat said on Ukrainian television.
President Volodymyr Zelensky, who will meet US envoy Keith Kellogg in Rome on Wednesday, said the strike showed the need for “biting sanctions” on the sources of income Russia uses to finance the war, including on those who buy Russian oil.
Trump said on Tuesday he was considering supporting a bill that would impose steep sanctions on Russia, including 500 percent tariffs on nations that buy Russian oil, gas, uranium and other exports.
“We get a lot of bull**** thrown at us by Putin ... He’s very nice all the time, but it turns out to be meaningless,” Trump said at a cabinet meeting.
When asked by a reporter what action he would take against Putin, Trump said: “I wouldn’t tell you. We want to have a little surprise.”
Separately, Europe is working on a new sanctions package against Moscow.
Trump, who returned to power this year promising a swift end to the war in Ukraine, has taken a more conciliatory tone toward Moscow in a departure from the Biden administration’s staunch support for Kyiv.
But initial rounds of talks between Russia and Ukraine to end the Kremlin’s February 2022 invasion have so far borne little fruit, with Moscow yet to accept an unconditional ceasefire proposed by Trump and accepted by Kyiv.
The US president’s promise to supply more defensive weapons appeared to reverse a Pentagon decision days earlier to stall some critical munitions supplies to Ukraine, despite increasing Russian attacks that have killed dozens in recent weeks.
Shortly after Wednesday’s attack, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said that diplomatic means to resolve the war have been exhausted. He vowed to continue supporting Kyiv.
Following Trump’s new promise, Zelensky said on Tuesday he had ordered an expansion of contacts with the United States to ensure critical deliveries of military supplies, primarily air defense.
Residents of Kyiv and other major cities spent the night in air raid shelters including metro stations.
Part of Russia’s overnight strike was aimed at a western region close to NATO-member Poland. The northwestern city of Lutsk, some 200 km (125 miles) from Poland, was the main target, Zelensky said, listing 10 other provinces across Ukraine where damage was also reported.
Polish and allied aircraft were activated to ensure air safety, Poland’s military said.
In Lutsk, buildings were damaged but no deaths or injuries reported in what amounted to the biggest air strike of the war on the city of 200,000 people, regional authorities said.
A storage facility of a local enterprise and some parking structures were ablaze, said the city’s mayor, Ihor Polishchuk.
Ivan Rudnytskyi, governor of the Volyn region that includes Lutsk, said 50 Russian drones and five missiles were in the region’s airspace overnight.
Macron turns to politics on second day of UK state visit

- The Macrons began the second day of their visit by paying their respects at the tomb of the late Queen Elizabeth II at Windsor’s St. George’s Chapel
- This is the first state visit by a French president to Britain since Nicolas Sarkozy in 2008 and the first by a European Union head of state since Brexit in 2020
The number of migrants arriving on England’s southern coast via small boats from northern France is a major political issue for Labour Prime Minister Keir Starmer.
Starmer is expected to push the French leader to do more to stop the crossings when the two leaders meet over lunch at the prime minister’s 10 Downing Street residence.
London hopes to strike a “one in, one out” deal to send small boat migrants back to the continent, in exchange for the UK accepting asylum seekers in Europe who have a British link, the domestic PA news agency reported.
After he took power a year ago, Starmer promised to “smash the gangs” getting thousands of migrants onto the small boats, only to see numbers rise to record levels.
More than 21,000 migrants have crossed from northern France to southeast England in rudimentary vessels this year, providing a massive headache for Starmer as the far-right soars in popularity.
In a speech to parliament Tuesday, Macron promised to deliver on measures to cut the number of migrants crossing the English Channel, describing the issue as a “burden” to both countries.
He said France and the UK had a “shared responsibility to address irregular migration with humanity, solidarity and fairness.”
The talks at Downing Street come after a first day dominated by pomp and a warm welcome from King Charles III and members of the royal family.
Tuesday’s royal welcome from King Charles III and his wife Queen Camilla included a horse-drawn carriage procession, a 41-gun salute and a sumptuous banquet at Windsor Castle, west of London, for the president and his wife Brigitte.
The Macrons began the second day of their visit by paying their respects at the tomb of the late Queen Elizabeth II at Windsor’s St. George’s Chapel.
Macron then discussed biodiversity issues with the king during a stroll in the castle grounds before he bade farewell to his host and headed to central London.
This is the first state visit by a French president to Britain since Nicolas Sarkozy in 2008 and the first by a European Union head of state since Brexit in 2020.
After Britain’s acrimonious departure from the European Union, the two countries smoothed post-Brexit tensions in 2023 during a state visit by the famously Francophile king and a summit with Prime Minister Rishi Sunak in France.
At Tuesday evening’s banquet, Charles used a speech to around 160 guests — including royals, Starmer and music icons Elton John and Mick Jagger — to warn that the two nations’ alliance was as crucial as ever amid a “multitude of complex threats.”
Charles concluded by toasting a new UK-France “entente... no longer just cordiale, but now amicale,” prompting Macron to laud “this entente amicale that unites our two fraternal peoples in an unwavering alliance.”
Hours earlier, in a speech to parliament, the French president had adopted a similar tone, saying that the two countries must work together to defend the post-World War II “international order.”
On Wednesday morning, Macron was also due to meet entrepreneurs and scientists working on artificial intelligence at Imperial College London.
Later, the French president will also visit the British Museum to formally announce the loan of the famous Bayeux Tapestry depicting the 1066 Norman conquest of England.
On Wednesday evening Macron will meet with the business community at a dinner held in his honor at the Guildhall, a historic building in the City of London, the capital’s financial district, with 650 guests in attendance.
Kenya’s president warns against bid to ‘overthrow’ govt by protests

NAIROBI: Kenyan President William Ruto warned Wednesday against attempts to “overthrow” the government through “unconstitutional means,” claiming recent violent protests were sponsored.
“They want to start chaos, organize protests, burn people’s property, bring disaster so as to overthrow the government before 2027... You cannot tell us that you want to organize chaos to overthrow the government!” Ruto said in Swahili.
Europe’s top human rights court is set to rule on cases against Russia over the conflict in Ukraine

- Judges at the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg will rule on four cases, brought by Ukraine and the Netherlands against Russia
THE HAGUE: Europe’s top human rights court is set to rule Wednesday on Russia’s actions in the conflict in Ukraine, including human rights violations during the full-scale invasion and the downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17.
Judges at the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg will rule on four cases, brought by Ukraine and the Netherlands against Russia, marking the first time an international court will adjudicate Russian culpability for the wider conflict in Ukraine dating from 2014.
Any decision will be largely symbolic. The complaints were brought before the court’s governing body expelled Moscow in 2022, following the full-scale invasion.
Families of the victims of the MH17 disaster see the decision as an important milestone in their 11-year quest for justice.
“It’s a real step in understanding who was really responsible,” Thomas Schansman, who lost his 18-year-old son Quinn in the tragedy, told The Associated Press.
The Boeing 777 flying from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur was shot down on July 17, 2014, using a Russian-made Buk missile fired from territory in eastern Ukraine controlled by separatist rebels. All 298 passengers and crew were killed, including 196 Dutch citizens.
In May, the UN’s aviation agency found Russia responsible for the disaster.
The ECHR is an important part of the Council of Europe, which is the continent’s foremost human rights institution. Russia was expelled from the council over Moscow’s invasion and war in Ukraine. However, the court can still deal with cases against Russia dating from before its expulsion.
In 2023, the judges sided with Ukraine and the Netherlands in a challenge over jurisdiction, finding there was sufficient evidence to show areas in eastern Ukraine controlled by separatist rebels were “under the jurisdiction of the Russian Federation,” including providing weapons, and giving political and economic support.
Wednesday’s ruling won’t be the last from the EHCR dealing with the war. Kyiv has other cases pending against Russia and there are nearly 10,000 cases brought by individuals against the Kremlin.
The decisions in Strasbourg are separate from a criminal prosecution in the Netherlands in which two Russians and a Ukrainian rebel were convicted in absentia of multiple murders for their roles in the downing of Flight MH17.
Meanwhile, in 2022, the United Nations’ top court ordered Russia to stop military operations in Ukraine while a case is heard, a process that takes years. Russia has flouted the order by the International Court of Justice.
Last month, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky formally approved plans to set up a new international court to prosecute senior Russian officials for the full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Schansman, who has also brought an individual case to the ECHR, has no plans to stop pursuing justice, more than a decade after his son’s death. “The worst thing we could to is stop fighting,” he told AP. “MH17 is not a case that will disappear for Russia.”
Russian FM Lavrov to visit North Korea this weekend

- Russia's security chief Sergei Shoigu has visited Pyongyang multiple times this year
SEOUL: Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov will visit North Korea this weekend, state media reported, the latest in a series of high-profile visits by top Moscow officials as the two countries deepen military ties.
Lavrov "will visit the Democratic People's Republic of Korea from July 11 to 13 at the invitation of the DPRK Foreign Ministry," the official Korean Central News Agency reported Wednesday.
Russia's security chief Sergei Shoigu has visited Pyongyang multiple times this year, including last month, when the two countries marked the one year anniversary of the signing of a sweeping military pact.
The two heavily-sanctioned nations signed the military deal last year, including a mutual defence clause, during a rare visit by Russian leader Vladimir Putin to the nuclear-armed North.
Pyongyang has become one of Moscow's main allies during its more than three-year-long Ukraine offensive, sending thousands of troops and container loads of weapons to help the Kremlin oust Ukrainian forces from Kursk region.
Around 600 North Korean soldiers have been killed and thousands more wounded fighting for Russia, Seoul has said, with Shoigu announcing in Pyongyang last month that the nuclear-armed North would send builders and deminers to Kursk.
North Korea only confirmed it had deployed troops to support Russia's war in Ukraine in April, and admitted that its soldiers had been killed in combat.
Leader Kim Jong Un has subsequently been shown in state media images honouring the flag-draped coffins of North Korean soldiers killed helping Russia fight Ukraine.