Vatican lacks tools to force Moscow to negotiate — religious studies expert

Roman Nazarenko, director of the Institute of Religion and Society at the Ukrainian Catholic University, shared his opinions on Espreso TV.

“When the Pope took the throne, he had already taken many concrete steps to support Ukraine. The Pope said he is ready to provide a platform for discussion, consultations, and negotiations. The U.S., including Trump, Italy, European countries, and Ukraine supported the initiative. But Russia did not support it.

Then Lavrov stated that it was strange for the Vatican to try to reconcile Orthodox peoples. This shows that the Vatican does not have the tools to force Moscow and Kyiv to the negotiating table,” Nazarenko emphasized.

According to the director, the Pope has clearly stated that many influential participants are needed to simultaneously pressure the conflict parties.

“This is exactly what the Pope meant: there are superpowers that promised to resolve the conflict within 24 hours. They could not do it, yet we expect the Pope to fix everything with the wave of a magic wand. In other words, the Vatican highlights its limitations but tries to remain involved,” Nazarenko added.

• Pope Leo XIV stated that the Holy See’s mediation in regulating the relationship between Ukraine and Russia is not as realistic as the Holy See’s voice in promoting peace.