In a Sunday sermon at the Vatican, Pope Francis appealed to the presidents of Russia and Ukraine, Vladimir Putin and Vladimir Zelensky, with a request to stop hostilities and seek terms for negotiations. His appeals are published by the Vatican News.
“It is alarming that the world will know the geography of Ukraine by such names as Bucha, Irpen, Mariupol, Izyum, Zaporozhye and other areas that have become places of indescribable suffering and fear,” the pontiff said.
“My appeal is addressed primarily to the President of the Russian Federation, I implore him to stop this spiral of violence and death, including for the sake of his own people. On the other hand, deeply saddened by the enormous suffering of the Ukrainian people as a result of the aggression they experienced, I make an equally confident appeal to the President of Ukraine to be open to serious proposals for peace,” the Pope added.
He called for a truce as soon as possible. “How much blood must still be shed for us to understand that war is not a solution, but only destruction? In the name of God and in the name of the feeling of humanity that lives in every heart, I once again call for an immediate ceasefire,” he said.
He also called on the political leaders of other states to "do everything possible" to end hostilities, to support dialogue initiatives, and to use those diplomatic means that have not yet been used.