Pope says peace in Ukraine ‘cannot be postponed’

Pope Leo has made an impassioned appeal for peace in Ukraine, saying the end to the four-year conflict “cannot be postponed” as the US tries to broker an elusive deal between Moscow and Kiev.

Ukraine’s military and local officials said on Sunday that Russia, which launched a large-scale invasion of its neighbor on February 24, 2022, used unmanned aerial vehicles and ballistic and cruise missiles in its latest attacks at night.

“My heart beats once again at the dramatic situation that everyone can see,” the Pope said in his weekly address to pilgrims in St. Peter’s Square after Sunday prayers. he said.

“So many victims, so many shattered lives and families, so much devastation, so much unspeakable pain.”

The United States has been trying to mediate between the two sides, but progress has stalled with Russia demanding Ukraine withdraw from parts of the eastern Donbas region it still controls, an idea Kiev has rejected.

“Peace cannot be postponed,” the Pope said.

“This is an urgent necessity that must find a place in the hearts and be translated into responsible decisions.”

War, he said, was “a wound inflicted on the entire human family” and left behind “traces of death, destruction and suffering that mark generations.”