Pope on Christmas Day urged to 'open the gates' to Ukraine peace talks

Pope Francis has called for the laying down of arms in Ukraine and the Middle East on Catholic Christmas Day. This was reported on December 24 by the portal Vatican News.

"Let us lay down our arms in Ukraine! Let there be the will to open the gates of negotiation, dialog, meeting to reach a just peace. Let us lay down our arms in the Middle East," the Pope said.

In his Christmas message he also advised to start peace talks in the conflict zone. In addition, the Pope appealed to the Christian communities in Israel and Palestine, where it is necessary to stop hostility. He also mentioned Syria, Lebanon and Libya.

Earlier, on December 24, the Kremlin's official representative, Dmitriy Peskov, said that there were no moves towards openness to negotiations on the part of Ukraine. He specified that Russia was open to resolving the situation on the Ukrainian side, but Kiev did not demonstrate its readiness.

The special operation to protect Donbass, the start of which was announced on February 24, 2022, continues. The decision was taken against the background of the aggravated situation in the region.