Ukraine has rejected Pope Francis’s call to hold negotiations with Russia more than two years into its invasion, saying that Kyiv will “never” surrender.
The 87-year-old Catholic leader said in an interview with Swiss broadcaster RTS that Ukraine should negotiate with Russia, which has seized large swathes of Ukrainian territory since it launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022.
In part of the interview released on Saturday, the Catholic leader raised the prospect of surrender.
Kuleba called on the pope to stand “on the side of good” and not put the opposing sides “on the same footing and call it ‘negotiations’”.
Kuleba also appeared to reference some Catholic church collaboration with Nazi forces during World War II when he said the following: “At the same time, when it comes to the white flag, we know this Vatican strategy from the first half of the 20th century.”
He also thanked Pope Francis for his “constant prayers for peace” and said Kyiv hoped he would visit Ukraine.
The foreign minister of Poland, a vocal ally of Kyiv, also condemned the pope’s remarks.
In a separate post, Sikorski made parallels between those calling for negotiations while “denying [Ukraine] the means to defend itself” and European leaders’ “appeasement” of Adolf Hitler before World War II.
Andrii Yurash, Ukraine’s ambassador to the Holy See, compared the pope’s comments to calls for “talking with Hitler” while raising “a white flag to satisfy him”.
Archbishop Sviatoslav Shevchuk, the head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, also said Sunday that surrender is not on the minds of Ukrainians.
Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni later clarified that the pope supported “a stop to hostilities [and] a truce achieved with the courage of negotiations”, rather than an outright Ukrainian surrender.
While Pope Francis has tried to maintain the Vatican’s traditional diplomatic neutrality, he has also expressed some sympathy with the Russian rationale for invading Ukraine, such as when he noted that NATO was “barking at Russia’s door” with its eastward expansion.
Ukraine has remained steadfast on not engaging directly with Russia on peace talks, with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy saying multiple times that peace negotiations must come from the country that has been invaded.
Related posts:
Buhari orders re-negotiation of $3.9 billion fine imposed on MTN
ULC suspends strike, to continue negotiation with govt next week
Government, bidders open negotiation for power plants sale
Brexit deal: EU leaders say agreement is not open for negotiation
FG opens negotiation with resident doctors
Messi’s dad arrives England for negotiation with Manchester City
FG to set up negotiation team to improve access to quality education
Nigerian workers optimistic ahead minimum wage negotiation
