Pope Francis has certainly been a divisive figure for individuals across the ideological spectrum, and his latest remarks on the Russia-Ukraine war have certainly added to his controversial legacy.
As the Associated Press reported:
The pope made his appeal during an interview recorded last month with Swiss broadcaster RSI, which was partially released on Saturday.
“I think that the strongest one is the one who looks at the situation, thinks about the people and has the courage of the white flag, and negotiates,” Francis said, adding that talks should take place with the help of international powers.
Ukraine remains firm on not engaging directly with Russia on peace talks, and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said multiple times the initiative in peace negotiations must belong to the country which has been invaded.
His comments sparked immediate debate on social media, with many Ukraine apologists expressing outrage:
The Pope says Ukraine should have the courage to raise a white flag and negotiate an end to the war.
"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.”
(First reported by… pic.twitter.com/Mpl8rQhcy9
— Yashar Ali 🐘 (@yashar) March 9, 2024
And sure enough, the Pope’s statement has now entered the Russian propaganda ecosystem… pic.twitter.com/DLSE8OyxqU
— Øystein Bogen (@oysteinbogen) March 9, 2024
Some skeptics of Ukraine’s behavior sided with the pope’s assessment, though.
Who do you stand with?
Russia+the Pope or Ukraine? pic.twitter.com/K5yM9CAEG9— Jennifer Cross (@ActiveJenCross) March 9, 2024
This wasn’t the first time Pope Francis has offered some sympathy for the Russian perspective.
As Politico reported shortly after the 2022 invasion:
Pope Francis said that NATO “barking” at Russia’s door may have led to Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine — and said he has offered to meet the Russian president in Moscow.
In an interview with the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera, Francis reflected on Russia’s lethal aggression toward its neighbor and said while he might not go as far as saying NATO’s presence in nearby countries “provoked” Moscow, it “perhaps facilitated” the invasion.
Francis also condemned the “brutality” of the war and compared it to Rwanda’s civil war in the 1990s, which resulted in a genocide of the Tutsi minority.
Then again, he did meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy:
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