Pope Francis urges nuclear disarmament, climate-change solutions

Vatican City: Pope Francis is calling for a world without nuclear arms and for effective measures to combat climate change.

Addressing the faithful today in St Peter's Square, he stressed what he called "the strong link between human rights and nuclear disarmament."

Francis said working to protect the dignity of the weakest and most disadvantaged implies "also working with determination to build a world without nuclear arms."

He urged people to put intelligence and technology at the "service of peace and true progress."

A strong crusader for the environment, Francis also expressed hope that people will realise the "need to adopt truly efficient decisions to fight climate change" while also combatting poverty.

Francis then cited the suffering from a cyclone in India that has left fishermen missing and from flooding in Albania.