ROME — Bishop Stanislav Šyrokoradjuk of Odessa, Ukraine, said Thursday that diplomacy has failed to resolve the Russian war on Ukraine and all that remains is self-defense.
“We need to work in two directions,” Bishop Stanislav Šyrokoradjuk told the Italian news agency Adnkronos. “Diplomacy is very effective when there is a partner. Today Russia is not a partner in diplomacy.”
“Today it is not possible to negotiate with Russia,” the prelate added. “The fact that Ukraine is defending itself today is proof of this for the whole world.”
“Every state has the right to defend itself,” he declared.
The bishop’s comments followed on insistence by Pope Francis that defense spending is immoral, that there is no such thing as a “just war,” and that conflicts must be resolved through dialogue.
Asked whether after fifty days of war in Ukraine, a phone call from Pope Francis to President Putin might unblock the situation, the bishop replied that it is “naive to think that Putin could look to another person as a moral authority to follow.”
Regarding a possible papal visit to Ukraine, Šyrokoradjuk expressed his hope that such a trip could happen.
“I hope, I very much hope that it will be useful and that it will help,” he said.
A meeting between Pope Francis and Moscow’s Patriarch Kirill would be senseless, the bishop contended, since the patriarch is a nothing but a lapdog to the Kremlin.
Russian Federation President Vladimir Putin (L) meets with Pope Francis at the Vatican on July 04, 2019 in Vatican City, Vatican. (Getty Images)
“There is no difference between Kirill and Putin and it is clear how they must be treated,” he declared. “But this is my opinion; the pope knows better what to do and how to act. We trust.”
Earlier this month, the bishop of Odessa urged the pope to issue a clearer condemnation of Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, while also insisting on the legitimacy of Ukraine’s armed self-defense.
“We must defend ourselves at all costs,” he said.
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