Vatican diplomacy is looking for peace and dialogue between the parties in the war in Ukraine started by Russia, and is ready to mediate, according to Pope Francis, who revealed in an interview published Monday in the Jesuit magazine America why he never names the Russian president.
Pope Francis stated that he considers it clear that Russia is the aggressor.
"I don't say it all the time, so as not to offend him and judge in general, yet it is known who I judge. It is not necessary for me to add a family name and a first name," declared the head of the Catholic Church.
“Why don't I name (Vladimir) Putin? Because it is not necessary; common knowledge. Sometimes people get caught up in the details. Everyone knows my position, with Putin or without Putin, without naming him," he declared.
He noted that when he talks about Ukraine, he talks about a people suffering the fate of martyrdom. He added that he has information about atrocities committed by Russian troops, primarily by Chechen and Buryat soldiers.
He recalled that on the second day of the war that broke out on February 24, he personally went to the Russian embassy in the Holy See, where he sent a message to Vladimir Putin through the ambassador: he is ready to travel on the condition that the Russian president gives even a narrow opportunity for negotiation. "Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov responded with a very polite letter, from which I understood that it is not necessary for the time being," Pope Francis said.
He said that he spoke on the phone three times with the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyi. He received a list of civilian and military prisoners from Kiev, forwarded this to the Russian government, and always received a positive response. Four times he received the delegation of the Ukrainian government in the Vatican.
"When I travel, I go to Moscow and Kiev, both places, not just one," he declared.
He emphasized that Cardinal Michael Czerny, head of the Vatican Office for the Promotion of Integral Human Development, and Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, responsible for foreign affairs, spent several days in Ukraine. Cardinal Konrad Krajewski, known as the Pope's right-hand man, visited the country four times. "The presence of the Holy See is strong, and I am in constant contact with the persons holding responsible positions," said the head of the Catholic Church.
Source: Magyar Hírlap
Photo: Tiziana Fabi / AFP
