Vatican rep in Ukraine summoned to Foreign Ministry over Pope's statements

Pope Francis and Visvaldas Kulbokas in June 2015. Photo: AP Photo/Gregorio Borg

On March 11, 2024, Apostolic Nuncio to Ukraine Visvaldas Kulbokas was summoned to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine over recent statements made by Pope Francis in the media. This was reported by the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry's website.

Visvaldas Kulbokas was informed that Ukraine is disappointed by the pontiff's remarks about the "white flag" and the necessity to "show courage and engage in negotiations" with the aggressor.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs noted that they expected "signals from the head of the Holy See towards the world community about the immediate need to unite forces to ensure the victory of good over evil, as well as appeals to the aggressor, not the victim." The Pope's words were evaluated in the ministry as "calls legitimizing the right of the strong and encouraging further disregard for international law norms."

The Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs underscored that "our state, more than anyone else, aspires to peace." However, as stated on the website of the foreign policy department, "this peace must be just and based on the principles of the UN Charter and the Formula of Peace proposed by President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky."

Earlier, the UOJ reported that the Pope called on Ukraine to raise the white flag. Later, the Vatican commented on the pontiff's words about the "white flag".

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