Pope Francis blamed the arms industry for the “martyrs” of the Ukrainian people

The Arms industry has been an important factor “Martyr” of the Ukrainian people In the Russian war, Pope Francis said on Saturday, that implies Even if arms exports stop, the suffering will continue.

When asked about the war, the pontiff referred to Poland’s recent announcement that it would not send weapons to Ukraine, and made brief remarks to reporters during a trip back to Rome from Marseille, France.

Francis recognized him Frustrated that the Vatican’s diplomatic efforts were fruitless. But he said the arms industry was also behind the conflict between Russia and Ukraine.

The Pope noted the irony of keeping Ukraine a “martyr” — many countries first gave it weapons and now take them away. Francis has long denounced the arms industry, describing it as “Merchants of Death“He has also expressed the right of nations to defend themselves.

“Now I see that some countries are withdrawing without handing over their weapons”, he noted.

“This will unleash a process that the Ukrainian people will undoubtedly represent a sacrifice. And this is wrong”, he insisted. This apparently refers to Prime Minister Mateusz Morawieck’s announcement that Poland will no longer send weapons to Ukraine because of the trade dispute.

“We cannot play with the sacrifice of the Ukrainian people“Francisco said. “We need to help resolve things in any way possible.”

“We should not have any illusions that the two leaders are going to eat together tomorrow, but do what is possible,” he added.

In other remarks, Francis spoke about his two-day visit to Marseille, where he urged Europe to be more welcoming to immigrants.

Francisco expressed hope Increased awareness of the plight of migrants Ten years after his first papal visit to the Italian island of Lampedusa, the starting point of the debate on migrants in Europe. But he said the “reign of terror” they were experiencing at the hands of smugglers was far from over.

Francis recalled when he became pope.I don’t even know where Lampedusa is”. The Sicilian island, which is closer to Africa than the Italian mainland, is a favorite destination for migrant smugglers and has seen frequent shipwrecks along its coast. Last week, the island was overwhelmed by the arrival of nearly 7,000 migrants in a single day, more than the population living there.

Francis, who was elected pope in 2013, said he had heard some stories about the problems in Lampedusa in the first months of his pontificate and had heard in prayer that “you must go there.”

The visit comes to highlight the importance of the migrant issue for Francis, who has made some memorable gestures of solidarity, including bringing back a dozen Syrian Muslim migrants on his plane in 2016 after visiting a refugee camp in Lesbos, Greece. .

(With information from AP)