Pope Francis considered on Saturday that some countries are “backtracking” on their support for Ukraine against the Russian invasion, pointing out that denying weapons to Kiev contributes to the “martyrdom” of Ukrainians.
Aboard the papal plane after a trip to Marseille, France, the leader of the Catholic Church told reporters that “some countries are backing down and will stop giving weapons” to Ukraine, which “will begin a process of martyrdom of the people.” Ukrainian and that is bad”, without naming any country.
Francis was speaking days after Poland announced it would not deliver more weapons to Kiev beyond those it had already committed due to disagreements over the export of Ukrainian grain to Europe, in competition with Polish exports.
The war, he argued, is not only a problem between Russia and Ukraine, but has at its root the arms industry, which he referred to as “factories of death.”
Francis admitted “some frustration” over the lack of concrete results from the Vatican’s peace mission in Ukraine, stressing that it is necessary to “resolve things in the way possible,” but “with no illusions that the two leaders will have dinner together tomorrow.” “. “.
He noted that the Vatican mission has managed to return children deported to Russia to Ukraine.
In summarizing his visit to Marseille, in which one of the main topics was the migratory wave towards Europe, Francis criticized the “ping-pong” with the people who arrive on European shores from North Africa, where “they are tortured.”
In the Mass he celebrated before some 50,000 people in Marseille, where he participated in the Mediterranean Meetings, Francis lamented that the life of “so many people who emigrate, of so many children who are not born and of so many abandoned elderly people” is “tragically discarded.”
In Marseille, Francis claimed to have found a city “that welcomes, that welcomes and receives without denying the identity of its people.”
“We need to rethink this problem for other parts of the world: the capacity to host,” he argued.
Source: TSF
