Russian Officials Slam Pope for Singling Out ‘Cruelest’ Minorities on Ukraine Frontlines - The Moscow Times

Russian governmental and spiritual figures person spoken retired against Pope Francis’ characterization of taste minorities arsenic the “cruelest” soldiers successful Ukraine, seizing connected the accidental to slam the West for its past conflicts and reiterate enactment for Moscow’s penetration of Ukraine.

In an interrogation with the Catholic mag America published Monday, the Pope appeared to suggest that non-Christian members of the Russian Armed Forces showed much cruelty than soldiers “of the Russian tradition.”

“Generally, the cruelest are possibly those who are of Russia but are not of the Russian tradition, specified arsenic the Chechens, the Buryats and truthful on,” Pope Francis said. “Certainly, the 1 who invades is the Russian state. This is precise clear.” 

Russia’s taste republics, including historically Buddhist Buryatia and Muslim-majority Chechnya, are among the country’s astir impoverished regions. They person suffered immoderate of the highest confirmed casualties among Russia’s forces in Ukraine.

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova was among the archetypal to respond to the Pope’s words, saying: “This is nary longer Russophobia, this is simply a perversion of a level I’m not alert of.”

“Not agelong agone the West thought it was the different mode around, and that the Slavs were torturing the Chechens, but present this presumption has changed,” she said successful a societal media post, referring to the wars Russia fought successful Chechnya successful the 1990s and aboriginal 2000s. 

“We’re 1 household with the Buryats, Chechens and others from our multi-ethnic and multi-confessional country,” Zakharova wrote.

Buryatia Governor Alexei Tsydenov claimed that Buryat soldiers “exemplify the champion traditions of the Russian army.”

“To support and support civilians, and to dainty prisoners of warfare with humanity and mercy, is precisely however the Russian service fights,” Tsydenov claimed.

The determination person pointed to the NATO bombings of Libya and Yugoslavia, successful summation to the Crusades and the European colonization of America, arsenic examples of “destruction without the information of Buryats, Chechens and different peoples of Greater Russia.”

“If our soldiers are noticed, it means they’re doing a bully job.”

Alexandra Garmazhapova, who heads the anti-war Free Buryatia Foundation, criticized Pope Francis’ “flippant” comments, saying that Ukrainian prosecutors had themselves identified taste Russian troops arsenic suspects successful the atrocities committed successful the Kyiv suburb of Bucha this spring.

“He truly tries to sidestep [Russian President Vladimir] Putin successful the interview, but for immoderate crushed explicitly names Chechens and Buryats,” Garmazhapova told the autarkic broadcaster Dozhd.

Lama Damba Ayusheev, the caput of the Buddhist assemblage successful Russia, defended taste Buryats’ resilience successful the look of hard conditions.

“I deliberation the European Latins don’t recognize that beingness successful acold Siberia and the Far East makes radical much resilient, diligent and hardy to assorted hardships,” he wrote.

“That’s wherefore our radical aren’t cruel, they conscionable person to support their homeland from fascism repeatedly and with dignity, similar our grandfathers and great-grandfathers.”

The Kremlin meantime said Monday it welcomed Pope Francis’ connection to mediate bid talks but again blamed Kyiv for making negotiations impossible.