President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky said that the Ukrainian society could not accept the symbols of reconciliation with Russia proposed by the Pope.
This is reported by Interfax-Ukraine.
“I had a meeting with the Pope, and he really made several attempts to find a format of reconciliation between Ukraine and Russia... I hold the Pope in deep respect, I respect this tradition, it is very important. But do you know how our society responded to this? I will explain: when the Pope prays for Ukraine, this is what a church minister can do to engage God's help. It is true. And all of us in Ukraine have always felt grateful to him. He is much trusted by us. When he showed the example of people who carried two flags, Ukrainian and Russian ones, alleging that there should be friendship – we could not accept it," Zelensky said in an interview with the Italian TV channel Rai 1, published in the President's Telegram channel on Friday.
According to the President, to date, the Ukrainian society experiences a split mentality, which manifests in the rejection of Russian symbols.
"Certain split has occurred. This is no longer the flag that is lifted at competitions, at the Olympics. When it is being lifted, everyone knows that athletes have trained for a long time, have won, and deserve respect. Today, this flag is the flag with which they used to kill us and are killing us now.
Now, when the Russian flag appears, at the mental level, it symbolizes only one thing for all of us – the invasion. So it happened. And I have no idea how to change it. We need time, we need to get everything back, we need apologies," the President stressed.
"Thus, when the Pope suggested carrying these two flags, and people walking side by side, it was difficult for us to accept. With all due respect, this is very difficult. Extremely difficult," Zelensky said.