Pope Francis Ukraine and Zelensky, right
Ukraine rebuffs Pope’s call for talks with Russia, as Putin describes it understandable
Ukraine has dismissed the Pope’s call to enter into peace talks with Russia, even as Russia said Pope’s call for talks to end the Ukraine war was quite understandable.
Vladimir Putin, the country’s leader, said Russia was ready to sit down, but regretted that Kyiv had ruled out talks due to its mistaken view that the West could defeat Russia.
However, Volodymyr Zelensky, Ukraine’s President, who did not refer directly to Pope Francis or his suggestion, but said his ideas had nothing to do with efforts from religious figures in Ukraine.
“They support us with prayer, with their discussion and with deeds,” Zelensky said. “This is indeed what a church with the people is.
“Not 2,500km away, somewhere, virtual mediation between someone who wants to live and someone who wants to destroy you.”
The head of the Catholic Church had called on Ukraine to have “the courage of the white flag”, adding “I think that the strongest one is the one who looks at the situation, thinks about the people, has the courage of the white flag, and negotiates.”
In an interview with Swiss broadcaster RSI, he said Kyiv, shouldn’t be ashamed to talk to Vladimir Putin’s regime, “before things get worse”, as “the word negotiate is a courageous word”.
“When you see that you are defeated, that things are not going well, you have to have the courage to negotiate. Negotiations are never a surrender,” he added.
For Russia, a call by Pope Francis for talks to end the Ukraine war was quite understandable and that Russia was ready to sit down, but that Kyiv had ruled out talks due to its mistaken view that the West could defeat Russia.
Pope Francis has said that Ukraine should have what he called the courage of the “white flag” to negotiate an end to a conflict that has killed tens of thousands.
Russia calls the war a “special military operation” to ensure its own security. Kyiv and the West call it a brutal colonial-style war of conquest.
“It is quite understandable that he (the pope) spoke in favour of negotiations,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters when asked about the Pontiff’s remarks.
Peskov said that President Vladimir Putin had repeatedly spoken of Russia’s willingness and openness to negotiations, but that Ukraine had knocked down such proposals.