Kiev Mayor Vitali Klitschko has urged Pope Francis to travel to the Ukrainian capital amid the Russian invasion, arguing that the presence of the head of the Roman Catholic Church could be crucial to ending the war and saving lives.
The letter of the mayor and former world boxing champion to Pope Francis followed invitations previously addressed by the Archbishop of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church and the Ambassador of Ukraine to the Vatican.
A Vatican statement said Pope Francis had received the letter, which was sent on March 8. He emphasizes that the pope is praying for the Ukrainian people, but there is no reference to an invitation or a trip to Kyiv.
“We believe that the presence of the Pope in Kyiv is a ‘key’ to save lives and pave the way for peace in our city, in our country and beyond,” Vitali Klitschko wrote in a letter to the head of the Roman Catholic Church. .
He said Kyiv was ready to offer any assistance needed. In the event that Pope Francis’ visit was not possible, the mayor of Kiev proposed a teleconference with the participation of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, which would be broadcast either live or videotaped.
“We call on you, as a spiritual leader, to show your compassion, to stand by the Ukrainian people, spreading with us the call for peace,” Klitschko said in the letter.
The contents of the letter were confirmed by the spokesperson of the mayor Klitschko.
The archbishop of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, Sviatoslav Shevtsuk, and the Ukrainian ambassador to the Vatican, Andriy Yuras, had invited the pope last month, but before the start of the Russian invasion.
The Vatican communiqué echoes the words of Pope Francis, who rejected Moscow’s claims to justify the invasion: is to stop this unacceptable military offensive before turning cities into cemeteries. ”
Russia says its actions are not aimed at occupying territories, but at demilitarizing and “demilitarizing” Ukraine. Moscow calls the invasion a “special military operation.”
On March 6, Pope Francis unreservedly rejected the term, stressing that it could not be considered “merely a military operation” but a war that has caused “rivers of blood and tears”.
SOURCE: ΑΠΕ-ΜΠΕ
Source: Capital
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