Pope blasts Russia’s ‘infantile’ war, EU-Libya deal in Malta
- Pope Francis, on island of Malta for two-day trip, said ‘some potentate’ with ‘infantile and destructive aggression’ is ‘provoking and fomenting conflicts’
- ‘We had thought invasions of other countries, savage street fighting and atomic threats were grim memories of a distant past’
Pope Francis said Saturday he is studying a possible visit to Kyiv and blasted Russian President Vladimir Putin for launching a “savage” war.
Speaking after his arrival in Malta, he delivered his most pointed and personalised denunciation yet of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Francis did not cite Russian President Vladimir Putin by name but the reference was clear when he said “some potentate” had unleashed the threat of nuclear war on the world in an “infantile and destructive aggression” under the guise of “anachronistic claims of nationalistic interests”.
“We had thought that invasions of other countries, savage street fighting and atomic threats were grim memories of a distant past,” Francis told Maltese officials and diplomats on the Mediterranean island nation at the start of a weekend visit.
Francis has to date avoided referring to Russia or Putin by name. But Saturday’s personalisation of the powerful figure responsible marked a new level of outrage for the pope.
“Once again, some potentate, sadly caught up in anachronistic claims of nationalist interest, is provoking and fomenting conflicts, whereas ordinary people sense the need to build a future that will either be shared or not be at all,” he said.
The Vatican tends to not call out aggressors in hopes of keeping open options for dialogue.