Pope Francis expressed concern about the humanitarian situation in the South Caucasus, urging an end to the war in Ukraine in his speech on St. Peter's Square on the last Sunday of Advent.
As usual, in his speech read from the window of the Apostolic Palace overlooking the square, Pope Francis emphasized his concern about the situation in the area of the so-called Lacin Corridor. It is the most significant land corridor between Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh, which was established after the ceasefire agreement two years ago. According to the agreement, the South Caucasus Corridor will be monitored by Russian peacekeepers until 2025.
Pope Francis expressed his concern about the fragile humanitarian situation of the people living in the area of the corridor, which, the head of the church added, could become even worse in the winter.
I ask everyone involved to commit to peaceful solutions for the sake of people's well-being, Pope Francis said. At the same time, the head of the Catholic Church asked the Virgin Mary to touch the hearts of all those who are able to stop the war in Ukraine.
Let us not forget the suffering of that people, especially the children, the elderly, and the sick, let us pray, pray!
said the pope.
He was also reminded of the children in Ukraine on Sunday morning, when he met with patients, their family members and doctors at a children's hospital supported by the Vatican. Pointing to the Ukrainian flag present at the meeting, the Pope emphasized that many children in the country are suffering because of the war. In an interview published in the Spanish daily ABC on Sunday, Pope Francis was asked what he thinks about the fact that he has already made more than a hundred appeals for peace in Ukraine.
I do what I can. They don't hear it. What is happening in Ukraine is terrifying. Huge cruelty. This is a very serious incident, and I draw attention to it publicly and constantly
replied the pope. When asked whether, while the pope is trying to mediate, there are those who criticize his statements, the head of the church said that he welcomes everyone, and that he has already met three times with the adviser on church affairs of the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskyi. I am in contact with everyone, I welcome everyone, I help them, he declared. Pope Francis emphasized that he does not see the war ending in a short time, since it is a world war, let's not forget.
I believe that war is fought when an empire begins to weaken and when there are weapons that can be used, sold, tested. I see that many interests are playing a role now - said the head of the church.
Source: vasarnap.hu
Featured image: Vatican News
