Pope Francis Condemns Russia’s Annexation Of Eastern Ukraine—And Urges Putin To Stop ‘Spiral Of Violence And Death’

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Pope Francis made his first personal appeal for Russian President Vladimir Putin to end the “spiral of violence and death” in Ukraine on Sunday, days after Putin announced Russia would illegally annex four occupied regions of Ukraine.

Pope Francis waves from the window of the Apostolic Palace during the weekly Angelus prayer on … [+] October 2, 2022 in The Vatican.

AFP via Getty Images

Key Facts

During his weekly Sunday morning speech from St. Peter’s Square in the Vatican, Francis told followers he would forgo the typical religious messages in order to bring attention to what is happening in Ukraine, according to the Associated Press.

The pope strongly deplored the “grave situation” created over the past few days, referencing Putin’s annexation of portions of eastern Ukraine, which Francis reportedly described as a violation of international law.

Francis said that it increases the risk of nuclear escalation to the point the pope said he fears there would be “uncontrollable and catastrophic consequences on the world level.”

While Francis has spoken out against the Russian invasion of Ukraine before, Sunday marked the first time he called on Putin directly to end the bloodshed, asking the president to think of his own people and how a military escalation would affect them, according to Reuters.

Tangent

On Friday, Russia said it would annex four regions of eastern Ukraine that are partially occupied by Russian forces, an escalation of the seven-month-long conflict. The annexation followed a set of referendums on whether to join Russia that were widely condemned as sham votes. Just one day later, both Russia and Ukraine confirmed that Ukrainian forces have reclaimed Lyman, a logistics hub in eastern Ukraine that represents the most significant victory in weeks, according to Reuters.

Key Background

Francis has condemned violence in Ukraine since the early days of the invasion, and in May, he offered to travel to Moscow and meet with Putin in hopes of ending the “brutality” displayed by Russian forces. In June, Francis questioned whether the war had been “provoked or not prevented” by NATO’s expansion into eastern Europe, saying that one unnamed head of state told him before the war that NATO was causing problems in Europe by “barking at the gates of Russia.” The pope faced backlash by critics–including Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry–who said the blame for the invasion lies solely with Putin and Russia. In comments to Reuters, an unnamed Vatican official compared Francis’ address to Pope John XXIII’s 1962 radio peace appeal, which has been credited with helping to avert the Cuban Missile Crisis.

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