Ukraine and its allies have hit back over remarks by Pope Francis appearing to call for a Ukrainian surrender in its war against Russia.
The Pope had been asked whether Ukraine should stop fighting, as Russian forces were still in the country with little sign of exit, by an interviewer who used the phrase “white flag” in questioning.
He said: “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.
“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.”
Zelensky condemned "virtual mediation" from thousands of miles away in his nightly address on Sunday
Reuters
Matteo Bruni, a Vatican spokesperson said the Pope had ‘picked up’ on the interviewer’s “white flag” comment and used it “to indicate a stop to hostilities (and) a truce achieved with the courage of negotiations”.
The comments were seen by Ukrainian officials as pro-Russian, as a surrender would likely see significant parts of Ukraine’s territory handed over to Russia.
Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said on social media that the strong person in any dispute “stands on the side of good rather than attempting to put them on the same footing and call it ‘negotiations’”.
Kuleba continued: “Our flag is a yellow and blue one… This is the flag by which we live, die, and prevail. We shall never raise any other flags.”
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But Nato chief Jens Stoltenberg said it was "not the time to talk about surrender"
Reuters“At the same time, when it comes to the white flag, we know this Vatican's strategy from the first half of the 20th Century”, he said, referencing allegations that Pope Pius XII did not take action against the Nazi regime in World War Two.
He said: “I urge [the Vatican] to avoid repeating the mistakes of the past and to support Ukraine and its people in their just struggle for their lives.”
In his nightly address on Sunday, Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky said the Pope was engaging in “virtual mediation” – and despite neither name-checking Francis nor his comments, the central theme of the address was religion’s role in the conflict.
Zelensky said religious figures in Ukraine “support us with prayer, with their discussion and with deeds”.
The Pope said he thought "the strongest one... has the courage of the white flag, and negotiates"
ReutersHe continued: “This is indeed what a church with the people is… Not 2,500 km away, somewhere, virtual mediation between someone who wants to live and someone who wants to destroy you.”
Ukrainian allies chimed in with criticism of the Pope’s comments; Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski said on social media: “How about, for balance, encouraging Putin to have the courage to withdraw his army from Ukraine? Peace would immediately ensue without the need for negotiations.”
While Latvian President Edgars Rinkevics said: “One must fight [evil] and defeat it, so that the evil raises the white flag and capitulates.”
While Nato Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg told Reuters: “If we want a negotiated peaceful lasting solution, the way to get there is to provide military support to Ukraine.”
In an interview at the bloc’s Brussels headquarters, Stoltenberg said: “What happens around a negotiating table is inextricably linked to the strength on the battlefield.”
When asked if his reaction meant now was not the time to talk about a white flag, Stoltenberg added: “It's not the time to talk about surrender by the Ukrainians. That will be a tragedy for the Ukrainians. It will also be dangerous for all of us.”
Last month, Zelensky said that 31,000 Ukrainian soldiers had been killed since the Russian invasion in February 2022, alongside tens of thousands of civilians in the occupied areas of the country.
And Vladimir Putin has repeatedly said that Russia is ready for negotiations to resolve the Ukraine crisis, his spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said today.