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☆ Pope Francis' 'white flag' comment is met by criticism from Ukraine and allies
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-10 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

In an interview recorded last month with Swiss broadcaster RSI and partially released on Saturday, Francis used the phrase "the courage of the white flag" as he argued that Ukraine, facing a possible defeat, should be open to peace talks brokered by international powers. "How about, for balance, encouraging Putin to have the courage to withdraw his army from Ukraine? Peace would immediately ensue without the need for negotiations," Polish Foreign Minister Radek Sikorski responded with a post on X, formerly Twitter. His post on X appeared to compare the pope's comments to calls for "talking with Hitler" while raising "a white flag to satisfy him." Matteo Bruni said that the journalist interviewing Francis used the term "white flag" in the question that prompted the controversial remarks.

Persons: Pope Francis, Francis, Putin, Radek Sikorski, Sikorski, Adolf Hitler, Andrii, Hitler, Matteo Bruni, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Sviatoslav Shevchuk, Shevchuk Organizations: RSI, Vatican, NATO, Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church Locations: Russia, Ukraine, Poland, Vatican, Swiss, Kyiv, Moscow, Ukrainian, Kherson, Zaporizhzhia, Odesa, Kharkiv, Sumy, New York City, Russian, Bucha, St

Kyiv, Ukraine CNN —For many Ukrainians, a recent somber assessment of the battlefield by Ukraine’s military chief was not a surprise. On Saturday, Igor Zhovka, deputy head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, slammed Zaluzhny for his comments. The situation may be better now but the truth of where the war stands “must be accepted, whatever it is,” he told CNN. But now even as the war moves into what Zaluzhny described as “positional warfare,” Shevchuk is convinced it will remain on everyone’s minds. Kyiv resident Natalia Kovalchuk believes everyone in Ukraine will have to join the war effort in the long run.

Persons: Ukrainian Armed Forces Valery Zaluzhny, Zaluzhny, Igor Zhovka, “, ” Zhovka, Volodymyr Zelensky, ”, Ursula von der, Vitalii Shevchuk, CNN Vitalii, ” Shevchuk, Shevchuk, Alexander Ermochenko, Zaluzhny’s candor, ” Lyuba Shipovich, Zelensky, Maxym, Iryna Avramets, ” Iryna, “ Zelensky, Oksana Yarosh, don’t, Natalia Kovalchuk, CNN Natalia Kovalchuk, ” CNN’s Gul Tuysuz Organizations: Ukraine CNN, Ukrainian Armed Forces, Economist, ”, European, CNN, Russian, Reuters, Dignitas, Getty, Kyiv, Spain Locations: Kyiv, Ukraine, Ukrainian, Russia, ” Ukraine, Hostomel, Ukraine’s Crimean, Donetsk, Luhansk, Russian, Moscow, Saltovka, Kharkiv, Crimea

CNN —Ukrainian officials have criticized Pope Francis’ recent address to Russian youth, calling his remarks “imperialist propaganda.”The pontiff made a video address to the 10th All-Russian Catholic Youth Assembly in St. Petersburg on Friday, during which he urged them to view themselves as descendants of the Russian empire. You are the descendants of great Russia: the great Russia of saints, rulers, the great Russia of Peter I, Catherine II, that empire – educated, great culture and great humanity. Last year, Russian President Vladimir Putin compared himself to Peter the Great during an exhibition dedicated to the first Russian emperor, using the comparison to justify Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. “Peter the Great waged the Great Northern War for 21 years,” Putin said at the time. The pope has previously been criticized for some of his comments about Russia’s war in Ukraine.

Persons: Pope Francis ’, Peter I, Catherine II, Russia, ”, Oleh Nikolenko, ‘, Russia ’, ” Nikolenko, Vladimir Putin, Peter the Great, “ Peter the Great, ” Putin, “, Peter, –, Sviatoslav Shevchuk, Catherine the Great, ” Shevchuk, Pope, Francis, Darya Dugina, Visvaldas Kulbokas, Francis ’, Volodymyr Zelensky Organizations: CNN, Catholic Youth Assembly, Ukrainian Foreign Ministry, Kremlin, Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, Vatican, La Stampa, NATO, Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs Locations: St . Petersburg, Russia, Russian, Ukraine, Sweden, Ukrainian, Italian, Moscow, Rome

☆ Pope Francis draws criticism for extolling Russian imperialist tsars
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-28 | by ( Philip Pullella | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Pope Francis holds the weekly general audience, in Paul VI hall at the Vatican, August 9, 2023. You are heirs of the great Russia - the great Russia of the saints, of kings, the great Russia of Peter the Great, of Catherine II, the great Russian empire, cultured, so much culture, so much humanity. An editorial on Italy's Il Sismografo website, which specialises in Catholic affairs, called the pope's words "odd" at a delicate moment in history. Pope Francis is a Jesuit. The comment prompted Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba to summon the Vatican's ambassador in Kyiv to protest, saying the pope's words were "unfair" and had "broken Ukraine's heart".

Persons: Pope Francis, Paul VI, Peter the Great, Vladimir Putin, Francis, Catherine II, Russia, Oleg Nikolenko, Nikolenko, Sviatoslav Shevchuk, Italy's, Catherine, Catherine the Great, Pope Clement XIV, Last, Putin, Tsar Peter the Great, propounding, Toomas Hendrik Ilves, Nexta, Darya, Dmytro Kuleba, Ron Popeski, Tomasz Janowski, Alex Richardson Organizations: Vatican, Handout, REUTERS, CITY, Kremlin, Ukrainian Foreign Ministry, Facebook, Rite Catholic Church, Ukrainian, Thomson Locations: Ukraine, St . Petersburg, Russia, Crimea, Russian, Estonian, Belarus, Poland, Lithuania, Moscow, Kyiv

☆ Ukrainian troops used 'wedding drones' and Google Maps to batter Russian forces during the war's chaotic early days, commanders say
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-16 | by ( Michael Peck | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

In the days after Russia's invasion last year, Ukrainian forces need help targeting Russian troops. One Ukrainian artillery unit relied on help from Ukrainian civilians to guide their strikes. Ukrainian and Russian drones prowl the skies constantly, looking for enemy positions and movements, as well as for artillery batteries, supply depots, and command posts. SERGEY SHESTAK/AFP via Getty ImagesSometimes Ukrainian forces would get indications that Russian troops were in a village, but not their precise location. Ukrainian troops fire an 2S7 Pion howitzer at Russian positions near Bakhmut in March.

☆ Ukraine's main Catholic church moves Christmas to Dec. 25 in pivot to West
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

KYIV, Feb 6 (Reuters) - Ukraine's main Catholic church said on Monday it would move to a new calendar that would see Christmas celebrated on Dec. 25 rather than Jan. 7, amid an effort by Ukrainian institutions to break cultural links to Russia. The move by the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church (UGCC), which counts just under a tenth of Ukrainians as worshippers, was welcomed by culture minister Oleksandr Tkachenko. That poll, held in December 2022, showed 59% of over 1.5 million respondents supported moving Christmas celebrations to Dec. 25, when the feast is celebrated in Western Europe. Last month, Tkachenko expressed hope that all of Ukraine's churches would agree to celebrate Christmas on Dec. 25. Until now, all major churches in majority-Orthodox Ukraine followed the Julian calendar, which celebrates Christmas on Jan. 7.

☆ A Russian couple who opposed Putin and the Ukraine war sought asylum in the US. They were detained for six months.
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-29 | by ( Sophia Ankel | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

A Russian couple sought asylum in the US but were detained for six months, The New York Times reported. The couple, who were both vocal critics of Putin and his invasion of Ukraine, fled Russia in April. A growing number of Russians fleeing the war are being held for months in US immigration centers. But during the transfer a guard handcuffed him and knocked him to the ground, causing a head injury, Shevchuk told The Times. It is unclear how many Russian asylum seekers are being detained in the US, but Svetlana Kaff, an immigration lawyer, told the Times that she has recently been flooded with requests for help.

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