The Vatican has apologised to Russia after the Pope said that two ethnic groups fighting in Vladimir Putin ’s army were “the most cruel” involved in the Ukraine war.
Russia's Foreign Ministry said the Vatican has said sorry for a statement by Pope Francis made in a recent interview in which he singled out two Russian ethnic minorities - the Chechens and the Buryats - as being "the most cruel" participants in the war in Ukraine.
At a briefing, Zakharova quoted from what she said was a message from the Vatican that "apologizes to the Russian side" for the Pope's comments.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova praised the message, saying that it showed the Vatican's "ability to conduct dialogue and listen to interlocutors."
A Vatican spokesman would say only that there had been diplomatic contacts on the matter.
The 85-year-old Pope had made the comments about the Chechens and Buryats during an interview with the Jesuit magazine America last month.
“The cruelest are perhaps those who are of Russia but are not of the Russian tradition, such as the Chechens, the Buryats and so on,” he told the outlet. “I speak of a people who are martyred. If you have a martyred people, you have someone who martyrs them.”
Francis has spoken out frequently about the "martyred" people of Ukraine since Russia invaded on February 24.
The Vatican has organised humanitarian deliveries over recent months, including a clothing drive to send thermal wear to Ukrainians suffering the winter cold with reduced heating and electricity.
"They are hungry. They are cold. So many die for lack of doctors and nurses," Francis said.
"Let's not forget them. Christmas, yes, in peace and with the Lord, yes, but with Ukrainians in the heart."
The Pope has called for a "humble" Christmas this year - with savings from reduced spending on gifts donated to help the "suffering people of Ukraine".
During his weekly general audience, Francis called for "concrete gestures" of charity for Ukrainians this holiday season.
"It's nice to celebrate Christmas and have parties but let's lower the level of Christmas spending a bit," he said.
"Let's make a more humble Christmas, with more humble gifts, and let's send what we save to the people of Ukraine who need it."
