Pope Francis called on Russian President Vladimir Putin to stop the "spiral of violence and death" due to Russia's war in Ukraine.

Pope Francis' statement was made on October 2 during a public speech in St. Peter's Square in Rome.

It became one of the most striking statements he made after Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine on February 24.

The leader of the Catholic Church also condemned the growing risk of nuclear war, calling it "absurd".

Pope Francis also called on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to "be open" to peaceful proposals to end the war.

The pontiff's comments came two days after Putin announced that Russia would annex four regions of Ukraine currently partially occupied by Russian troops.

In his speech on September 30, Putin also made veiled threats about the use of nuclear weapons, repeating his statements in which he warned the West that "this is not a bluff."

The Kremlin has not yet reacted to the Pope's comment.

Russia's war against Ukraine

  • At 5:00 a.m. on February 24, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced the start of a military operation against Ukraine in the Donbass at the request of the "DPR" and "LPR" groups.

    On February 21, during a televised address to Russians, Putin called the so-called "DPR" and "LPR" independent states within the regions.

    On February 22, the Federation Council ratified this decision.

  • All days of the war, Ukrainian cities were bombarded with rockets, aircraft flew over them.

    Russian troops are attacking, including from the territory of Belarus, using airfields, bases and roads.

    Representatives of Lukashenka's regime justify the war, his opponents consider the territory of Belarus to be occupied, many call for resistance to the Russian invaders.

  • On February 27, the International Legion of Territorial Defense was created in Ukraine, and foreign volunteers were invited to join it.

    Belarusians also entered there.

  • During the six months of war in Ukraine, 11 Belarusians are known to have died fighting on the Ukrainian side.

    These are Ilya Khrenov, Alyaksei Skoblia, Dmitri Apanasovich, Dmitri Rubashevskyi, Konstantin Dubaila, Pavel "Volat", Ivan Marchuk, Vasil Parfyankov, Vasil Grudovik, Vadim Shatrov and one of the fighters of Kalinovsky's regiment, whose name was not mentioned.

    In addition, it is known for sure about two prisoners from Kalinin - Ian Djurbeyka and Syarhei Dzhogtsev.

    There are no details about their fate.

  • It is also known about cases of death of natives of Belarus who fought in Ukraine on the side of Russia.

    During the six months of the war, there were nine such people.

  • On March 30, the UN approved the composition of an independent commission that will investigate Russian war crimes in Ukraine.

    It included people who worked in the analysis of the genocide in Rwanda and Bosnia and Herzegovina.

  • Contrary to Putin's statements about attacks only on military facilities, the Russians are bombing schools, kindergartens and residential areas of Ukrainian cities.

    The Russians are using banned weapons, including cluster bombs, against civilians.

  • On April 1, Lithuania became the first country in the European Union to completely abandon Russian gas.

    Latvia and Estonia followed her example.

    Germany has promised to completely stop using Russian oil by the end of 2022.

  • On April 2, after the liberation of the town of Bucha near Kyiv, photojournalists published dozens of photographs showing hundreds of dead people, victims of mass murders committed by Russian troops.

    Many are buried in spontaneous mass graves.

    The Russian occupation also brought great destruction to the people of Barodyan.

    It is also known about a number of rapes, including babies.

  • On May 9, the US President signed the Land Leasing Law.

    This law restores the program from the Second World War, which will speed up the delivery of weapons to Ukraine and increase the amount of such assistance.

  • In June, the so-called "DPR" sentenced two volunteers from Great Britain and one from Morocco to death.

    The same punishment threatens some other prisoners.

  • On July 29, as a result of an attack on the colony in Alenivtsi, at least 53 Ukrainian prisoners, who previously defended the Azovstal plant and surrendered after completing their mission, were killed.

    The Russians accused Ukraine of the attack, the Ukrainian side declared that the prisoners were deliberately killed by the Russian side.

  • The official number of dead Ukrainian soldiers was announced on August 22 by the Minister of Defense of Ukraine, Valery Zaluzhny.

    According to him, it is about 9,000 soldiers.

  • During the six months of the war, Russia was able to occupy about 20% of the Ukrainian territory.

    In March, the area of ​​occupied land reached 30%.

    However, at the end of the month, Russian troops retreated from the north of Ukraine, as well as partially from Kharkiv.

    At the end of August, Crimea, Luhansk and Kherson regions were completely occupied.

    And also 50% of the territory of the Donetsk region, about 70% of the Zaporizhia region, approximately 30% of the Kharkiv region.

  • Kherson remains the only regional center of Ukraine captured by Russia after February 24.

    The city was occupied by Russian troops in the first days of the war without actually fighting.

    Kyiv suspects part of the former leadership of Kherson and the region of treason.

    The former head of the SBU of the Kharkiv region was also detained on such suspicion.

  • In September, Ukrainian troops launched a large-scale counteroffensive, as a result of which Russian forces began to rapidly flee from their positions in the Kharkiv region.

    Only on the day of September 11, Ukrainians liberated more than 20 settlements in Slobazhanshchyna.

  • In September, Ukraine withdrew its mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo under the AAN to send an aviation unit to defend against Russian aggression.

  • On September 21, Putin announced a partial mobilization in Russia.

  • Independent verification of information about military actions provided by officials of various parties is still impossible.