His Holiness, Pope Francis, stated that last month, the Hungarian Prime Minister Victor Orban informed him that Russian President Vladimir Putin intends to end the invasion of Ukraine on May 9 – Russia’s Victory Day.
In an interview published Tuesday, the Pope revealed this to the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera.
Remember that the conflict between Russia and Ukraine started in February.
Putin authorized the invasion of Ukraine due to political tensions between the two nations.
“Orban, when I met him, he told me that the Russians have a plan, that everything will be over on May 9,” Pope Francis said.
“This would also explain the speed of the escalation these days. Because now it’s not just the Donbas, it’s Crimea, it’s Odesa, it’s taking away the Black Sea port from Ukraine, it’s everything.”
“There is not enough will for peace,” the Pope said. “I am pessimistic, but we must make every possible gesture to stop the war,” he added.
Pope Francis also repeated his earlier statements that he is ready to travel to Moscow to meet with Putin.
He, however, compared the war in Ukraine to the genocide in Rwanda.
“We have not yet received an answer and we are still insisting, even if I fear that Putin cannot and does not want to have this meeting right now. But so much brutality, how can you not stop it? Twenty-five years ago we experienced the same thing with Rwanda,” Pope Francis said.
Source: dailypost.ng
Russian President Vladimir Putin gestures during a ceremony to sign the treaties for four regions of Ukraine to join Russia, at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, Friday, Sept. 30, 2022. The signing of the treaties making the four regions part of Russia follows the completion of the Kremlin-orchestrated "referendums." (Mikhail Metzel, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)