ROME, August 26. /TASS/. The Vatican does not appreciate it when some government tells the Pope what to say since Pope Francis is convinced that religious leaders should support peace instead of politicians, Italian journalist and writer Marco Politi who is an expert on the Vatican told a TASS correspondent on Friday.
"Summoning an Apostolic Nunzio to the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry is an aggressive step by Kiev who attempts to ‘gag’ Pope Francis. Given that the Kiev regime insists it has nothing to do with the murder of Darya Dugina, it is not quite clear why they should react to the Pope’s condolences to the victim of the attack. Francis, like all his predecessors on the Throne of Saint Peter, is on the side of all victims, the A list and the B list of those killed do not exist for him. The Vatican’s diplomacy is displeased when some government wants to meddle in what the Pope can and cannot say. Those who know Francis understand that he won’t allow to be pressured or gagged," the expert said.
During the Wednesday general audience, Francis expressed condolences and regrets to all the "innocent victims" of the Ukrainian conflict, mentioning Russian journalist Darya Dugina who was killed by a car bomb. As reported earlier, the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry summoned the Vatican’s envoy to Ukraine, Apostolic Nunzio Visvaldas Kulbokas in order to express disappointment with the Pope’s remarks. Additionally, Kiev urged the Pope "to avoid unfair statements which upset Ukrainian society."
That said, Ukrainian representatives insist on the Pope’s visit to Kiev, emphasizing that it would testify to his compassion and support. "Currently, a visit to Kiev is not seen as a positive move. The Pope wants to combine visiting Kiev and Moscow for mediation with the approval coming from Washington and Moscow," the expert explained.
While mentioning earlier crises and the US involvement in Kiev’s decisions, the Vatican expert noted that "Francis is confident that the current crisis also points to the necessity of working on a new pact of world order and this is not only about the war between Russia and Ukraine but about a conflict between the West and Russia which threatens the global balance. So the Vatican thinks that it is necessary to work on an international level to reach a new balance just like in 1975, the Helsinki Accords established a new balance between the West and the East," he pointed out.