Originally published at The Crux
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The Vatican’s foreign minister has told Russian officials the bloody conflict between Russia and Ukraine must end – and that it can’t be resolved through military means.
Archbishop Paul Gallagher, in Moscow this week for a series of meetings, appeared Tuesday with his counterpart, Russian foreign minister Sergey Lavrov, and spoke with reporters in the Russian capital.
“The position of the Holy See is clear,” Gallagher said, “the conflict cannot be resolved by military means” and “it is essential to create the conditions for a political and diplomatic process.”
“To be clear,” Gallagher said, “this war must end.”
Gallagher also reiterated Pope Leo XIV’s appeal to the two countries to end the conflict and instead open “genuine negotiations” with the international community.
“It is urgent and necessary to end the hostilities and plan future relations so as not to remain prisoners of the wrongs of the past,” Gallagher said.
Gallagher also called on both sides to respect international and humanitarian law, in particular regarding infrastructure, prisoners of war, civilians, and the wounded.
“Any concrete result in the humanitarian sphere will help alleviate suffering and make it possible to restore a minimum level of trust between the parties to the
