The Apostolic Nuncio in Ukraine, Bishop Visvaldas Kulbokas, pointed out that Pope Francis could travel to kyiv in August. He lamented the superficiality with which some approach the conflict and considered that the Pope is “the only leader of the attacked people who suffer”.
Bishop Kulbokas is 48 years old, was born in Lithuania and has lived in Ukraine for ten months.
While giving an interview with the Italian newspaper Avvenire, he lamented that “the lightness, the superficiality with which the subject of war is addressed in several countries.”
“‘Will Ukraine or Russia win?’ seems to be the only question. As if war were a game. One stops at the theoretical level, as if behind all this there were no victims, wounded, escaped or traumatized, and the heart does not know what it means to feel sorry for him”, he lamented.
Bishop Kulbokas recalled the words of the Secretary for Relations with States of the Holy See, Bishop Paul Richard Gallagher, who explained that “the Pontiff is determined to come to kyiv: it is not an abstract project”.
Along these lines, the Nuncio in Ukraine stressed that “the first factor to assess is his physical condition, which will be ‘tested’ on the next trip to Canada”, and added that “there is talk of August for the trip to Ukraine” .
“It is a period that is being considered, but without having set a date yet,” he said.
Referring to a possible Pope’s trip to Russia, Bishop Kulbokas said that the Holy Father “has repeated that he also wants to personally contribute to stopping the war”, so “if going to Moscow would be useful in this sense, the Pontiff has given its full availability.
Regarding the visit to Ukraine, the diplomat described that “it is a sign of closeness to the people who suffer. And this is the best key to understand the Pope’s desire to be among us.”
“Everyone is waiting for you. Not just the people. Not just Catholics. Even the authorities: from President Zelensky to the Foreign Minister. Even the mayor of kyiv, Vitaliy Klitschko, officially invited him in a letter in March”, he noted.
Finally, Bishop Kulbokas explained that “apart from the Pope, no other public figure in the world has spoken such strong and clear words for our aggrieved people.”
However, the Holy See diplomat recalled that the Pope’s language “is not a political language”, because he morally condemns war.
“It is enough to listen to it to realize that the message is very clear. But intellectual honesty is necessary,” he expressed.