Urbi et Orbi: Pope Calls for Peace in Ukraine, Gaza, and Sudan

Pope Francis used his midday blessing ‘urbi et orbi’ (‘to the city and to the world’) to call for an end to the fighting, or at least better conditions for civilians, in the conflicts in Ukraine, Gaza and Sudan. 

‘Let the sound of weapons be silenced in war-torn Ukraine,’ he said from the balcony of St Peter's Basilica. ‘May there be the courage necessary to open the door to negotiations and gestures of dialogue and encounter to achieve a just and lasting peace.’ 

Speaking about the conflict in Gaza, Francis called the humanitarian situation ‘extremely difficult’.

‘Let there be a ceasefire, let hostages be released and help be given to people who are exhausted by hunger and war,’ he said, calling for ’the doors of dialogue and peace to be opened.’ 

The 88-year-old Argentine pontiff also mentioned the civil war in Sudan and the subsequent famine. 

‘May the Son of the Most High support the efforts of the international community to facilitate access to humanitarian aid for the civilian population of Sudan and to initiate new ceasefire negotiations,’ Francis called.

Earlier, Pope Francis said that those who ‘fail’ ‘need to have the courage to negotiate’. The pontiff called on Ukraine to negotiate with the aggressor country Russia and noted that ‘the one who has the courage of the white flag is stronger’.

Later, the Vatican explained that Pope Francis used the image of the white flag because it was suggested by the interviewer. The pontiff (as Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni emphasised) was referring to a truce, not surrender.

The Pope's words provoked a sharp reaction both in Ukraine and in European countries. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said that the country's blue and yellow flag and other flags would not be raised. He also warned the Vatican against ‘repeating historical mistakes’ and called for help for Ukraine.

The head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, Sviatoslav Shevchuk, said that Ukraine was ‘wounded, but not conquered’ and ‘no one would even think of surrendering, even where there are hostilities today’.