Peace in Ukraine is an “urgent necessity”, Pope Leo XIV said on Sunday. He made this statement two days before the fourth anniversary of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. TASR informs about it according to a report by the AFP agency and the Vatican News website.
- Pope Leo XIV. called peace in Ukraine an urgent necessity.
- The fourth anniversary of the Russian invasion of Ukraine falls on Tuesday.
- The United States mediated several trilateral negotiations without a significant breakthrough.
- The main point of contention in the negotiations is the control of the Donbas region.
- Russia currently occupies about a fifth of Ukraine’s territory despite losses.
“Peace cannot be postponed. It is an urgent need that must find a place in hearts and manifest itself in responsible decisions.” he told the crowd gathered in St. Peter’s Square.
“I strongly call again: let the guns fall silent, let the bombings stop, let a cease-fire be reached without delay and let the dialogue be strengthened to open the way to peace,” continued the Pope.
Lev mentioned the number of victims, destroyed lives and families and unimaginable suffering. According to him, every war is truly a blow to all of humanity and leaves behind “death, destruction and suffering that will mark entire generations.”
On Tuesday, Ukraine will commemorate the fourth anniversary of the invasion of Russian forces on its territory. The war that began on February 24, 2022, it destroyed Ukrainian cities, drove millions of people from their homes and claimed many victims on both sides.
Russia today occupies roughly a fifth of the Ukrainian territory and continues to advance despite heavy losses and Ukrainian attacks on logistics, reports AFP.
The United States, under the leadership of President Donald Trump, is urging both sides to end this war. In recent weeks, Washington has mediated several rounds of trilateral negotiations between representatives of Ukraine, Russia and the United States.
However, there was no significant breakthrough in the mentioned negotiations. A key point of contention in the negotiations between Russia and Ukraine is the Donbas in eastern Ukraine. Moscow claims all of Donbas, although it currently occupies about 90 percent of its territory. Kyiv strongly rejects this request. Russia says it will take the rest of the region by force if peace talks fail.
