Forging a new
Vatican-Kremlin modus vivendi? GazetaWyborcza columnist Tomasz Bielecki calls the idea a
'delusion' for both parties.
Putin and Pope:
'Angels of Peace' in the Vatican (Gazeta Wyborcza, Poland)
"Putin
deludes himself by thinking his visit to the pope will validate the Kremlin’s
foreign policy. The Vatican, in turn, is thinking of its role as mediator of
international disputes. … For several years now, Putin has been burnishing an
image deeply rooted in the days of Tsarist Russia as a defender of Christians
in the Middle East. So when it comes to Middle East affairs, papal diplomacy is
looking for cooperation with Russia. … An attempt to forge such an alliance
with Putin would be an even greater delusion than believing that gentle
persuasion would turn the Kremlin into a sincere promoter of peace in
Ukraine."
"Mutual Delusions" is how Marta Dassu,
former deputy foreign minister of Italy, referred to last Wednesday's meeting
between Pope Francis and Vladimir Putin. Putin deludes himself by thinking his
visit to the pope will validate the Kremlin’s foreign policy. The Vatican, in
turn, is thinking of its role as mediator of international disputes. Secretary
of State Cardinal PietroParolin
would like to posit a "papal mediation center" within the Roman
Curia to protect "God’s gift of peace." That would usher the Vatican
into the center of global diplomacy.
Barack Obama thanked Francis for his help bringing about a
thaw between the United States and Cuba. We don't know the details surrounding
papal diplomacy in Havana, but the Cuban success may fuel the peace-making
aspirations of the Holy See. The trouble is that the post-Soviet region is an
entirely different kettle of fish – and although the Vatican doesn't want to
say it out loud, Obama’s intentions toward Cuba are entirely different from
Putin’s intentions toward Ukraine.
Major Archbishop SviatoslavShevchuk of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church has sought to convince Francis to speak
out openly against Russian military intervention in Ukraine, but Shewchuk has had little success. He criticized Francis
after his February statements on the war which excluded the issue of Russian
involvement. In turn, the Patriarchate of the Russian Orthodox Church, at one
with the Kremlin propaganda machine, praised the pope for his "balanced
attitude" toward events in Ukraine.
Francis easily avoided the second impression
during his pontificate meeting with Putin, who came to Italy to foment
opposition over E.U. sanctions against Russia. The official reason for Putin's
visit was EXPO 2015 in Milan,
where Putin met with Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi. He then flew to Rome
to meet the pope. At the moment, Putin’s protégés are again rekindling violence
in Donbas and Russia is concentrating its forces along the border. What does
Francis make of all this? According to the Vatican press service, the pope
called on Putin to make "great and sincere efforts" to achieve peace
in Ukraine, and gave him a medallion with an angel of peace, which can be
interpreted as a kind of admonition.
Posted By Worldmeets.US
The IMF, the Pope and FIFA: 'Stalin's Physics' Still Hold (Izvestia, Russia)
For several years now, Putin has been burnishing an image
deeply rooted in the days of Tsarist Russia as a defender of Christians in the
Middle East. So when it comes to Middle East affairs, papal diplomacy is
looking for cooperation with Russia. "Listen to the Pope," is how
Putin admonished E.U. diplomats at the 2013 G-20 Summit in St. Petersburg, with
quotes from Francis' letter warning against a "futile quest for a military
solution." That was with regard to planned [Western] rocket attacks on the
military installations of Bashar al-Assad in retaliation for the use of
chemical weapons in Syria, which, despite protests from the Kremlin, were being
planned at the time by Washington, London and Paris. Ultimately, plans for
Western intervention fell through, but in the case of Syria, the angels of peace
are farther than ever from victory.
To make matters worse, the Kremlin now uses religion and
code words to defend traditional values and Russian identity against the
"depravity of the West" and to diminish civil liberties in Russia.
It's quite a trap for the Catholic Church to seek to collaborate with Orthodox Christianity.
The collective defense of conservatively understood "Christian
values" is quite tempting. However, an attempt to forge such an alliance
with Putin would be an even greater delusion than believing that gentle
persuasion would turn the Kremlin into a sincere promoter of peace in Ukraine.
