Pope Francis, in his traditional Christmas message "Urbi et Orbi", called for peace talks between Ukraine and russia, stressing the need to end the conflict, Reuters reports.
"Let the sound of weapons fall silent in war-torn Ukraine!" the pontiff said, addressing thousands of believers from the balcony of St. Peter's Basilica.
He stressed the importance of "the courage needed to open the door to negotiations" and called for "gestures of dialogue and encounter" to achieve a just peace.
The call came against the backdrop of previous controversial statements by the Pope on Ukraine, including his recent statement on the need for a "white flag", which drew criticism from Ukrainian officials.
Ukraine's position on the talks remains unchanged - Kyiv rules out the possibility of peace talks without restoring pre-war borders. Meanwhile, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy recently proposed a diplomatic settlement that would involve “freezing” the current front lines and deploying an international peacekeeping force.
In his address, the pontiff also called for an end to conflicts in other hot spots around the world, including Lebanon, Mali, Mozambique, Haiti, Venezuela, and Nicaragua.
As previously reported, russia launched another massive missile strike on Ukrainian cities on Christmas Day. This time, the occupation country used nearly 100 missiles of various types, including ballistic missiles, as well as more than a hundred kamikaze drones.
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