The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine commented on the Pope's statement about the "heirs of the great Mother Russia". The message was posted on the Facebook page of Foreign Ministry spokesman Oleg Nikolenko.
According to his statement, it is this kind of "imperialist propaganda", the mention of spiritual ties, and the expression of the "need" to save "great Mother Russia" that is used by the Kremlin to justify the murders of thousands of Ukrainians and the destruction of hundreds of Ukrainian cities and villages.
He also expressed regret that the great-power ideas that actually underlie Russia's aggressive policy are coming from the mouth of the Pope.
"It is very unfortunate that Russian great-power ideas, which, in fact, are the reason for Russia's chronic aggressiveness, consciously or unconsciously, come from the mouth of the Pope, whose mission, in our understanding, is precisely to open the eyes of Russian youth to the destructive course of the current Russian leadership," the speaker wrote.
As we reported earlier, the head of the Catholic Church, Pope Francis, during a teleconference with Russian youth expressed his admiration for "great Russia" and urged Russians not to reject their imperial "heritage."
