The pope, who has called for peace on several occasions since the full-scale invasion in 2022, made the remarks in an as-yet-unpublished interview with Swiss broadcaster RSI last month.
According to the Reuters news agency, which has seen a transcript of the conversation, the Pope was asked about his view on whether Ukraine should give up and whether, in that case, it would legitimize the right of the strong in the world.
– I believe that the strongest is the one who looks at the situation, thinks about his people, has the courage to raise the white flag and negotiate, the Pope replied.
– The word negotiation is a brave word. When you understand that you are defeated, that things are not going well, then you must have the courage to negotiate.
Sharp criticism from Ukraine
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba has reacted strongly to the Pope’s statement. He writes that the country will never raise any other flag than its own.
“The strongest is the one who in the fight between good and evil stands on the side of the good rather than trying to equate them and call it ‘negotiations’,” he writes on X.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy speaks Telegramwithout mentioning the Pope by name, that the only thing keeping “Russian murderers and torturers” away from the rest of Europe are the Ukrainian defenders.
“In Ukraine, the white walls of houses and churches used to stand, now burned and destroyed by Russian shells. This speaks volumes about who must stop for the war to end”.
Zelenskyy continues by thanking the priests who support the soldiers at the front.
“This is the church – it stands together with the people, not two and a half thousand kilometers away somewhere and mediates virtually between someone who wants to live and someone who wants to destroy.”