Pope Francis visits Russian embassy to express concern about Ukraine invasion

Pope Francis on Friday visited the headquarters of the Russian Embassy to the Holy See without prior announcement to express his concerns about the ongoing military conflict in Ukraine, the Vatican announced.

The Pope met with Russian diplomats for a little over an hour as per the Vatican statement a day after Russia sent its troops into Ukraine.

Also read | Taliban urges Ukraine-Russia peace dialogue, express concern for civilians

While the Vatican did not reveal what the 85-year-old discussed with Russian diplomats on Friday, the Pope had, on Wednesday, said that he had “great pain” in his heart over the deteriorating situation in Ukraine.

The Pope’s comments during the General Audience held on Wednesday prior to the Russian invasion, where the 85-year-old said, “Despite the diplomatic efforts of the last few weeks, increasingly alarming scenarios are opening up.”

Also read | Bitcoin donations surge for Ukrainian army amid Russian invasion

“Once again the peace of all is threatened by partisan interests,” the Pope went on, urging those “with political responsibility to examine their consciences seriously before God, who is the God of peace and not of war, who is the Father of all, not just of some, who wants us to be brothers and not enemies.”

Pope Francis went on to pray that “all the parties involved refrain from any action that would cause even more suffering to the people, destabilizing coexistence between nations and bringing international law into disrepute.”

Also read | EU to sanction Vladimir Putin and Sergey Lavrov, German foreign minister says

The 85-year-old further asked everyone to observe a fast on March 2 to make it a “Day of Fasting for Peace.”

Since Russia invaded Ukraine things have quickly gone south for the eastern European nation: in less than 48 hours, Russian forces have destroyed more than 74 military installations in the country, and have also reached the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, which had to bear the brunt of a Russian missile barrage on Friday.