Pope Francis thinks that the only way to solve the situation between Ukraine and Russia is through negotiation and finding common ground. While Russian President Vladimir Putin has made it clear that he will not stop his aggression against Ukraine until he has taken over, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has simply said Russia can just leave and restore the borders.
In transcripts of the interview, his Holiness certainly tried making a case for being a lamb instead of a lion.
“I think that the strongest one is the one who looks at the situation, thinks about the people and has the courage of the white flag, and negotiates. The word negotiate is a courageous word. When you see that you are defeated, that things are not going well, you have to have the courage to negotiate. One may feel shame, but how many dead will it (the war) end up with? (One should) negotiate in time, find a country that can be a mediator. Do not be ashamed of negotiating, before things get worse.”
He later summed up his argument with a single line. “Negotiating is never a surrender.”
While it may not be “surrender” in the traditional sense of the word, in this situation it is. The Russians have ruined countless lives and taken thousands more. Americans have watched billions of our tax dollars be sent to Ukraine, all to achieve minimal results. Negotiation, at this point, comes from killing and driving back the enemy.
If his Holiness wants to see peace in the region then he needs to reach out to Putin and advocate for the end of this madness. So far, nobody else has been able to get him to budge from total annihilation of Ukraine.
