"The seeming conditional neutrality of the Vatican at the diplomatic level in no way means spiritual, moral, or pastoral neutrality," stated Patriarch Sviatoslav, the head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church.
"We feel that the Pope, and with him the entire Universal Catholic Church, is now with us, with the suffering Ukrainian people, and he understands well who is the criminal and aggressor, and who is the victim who needs to be saved, supported, and protected," he said in a video message reported by the Information Department of the UGCC.
The head of the UGCC expressed his gratitude to Pope Francis for his concern, specifically mentioning the visit of the special papal envoy, Cardinal Mateo Zuppi, to Ukraine.
"As the cardinal himself said, it is not about mediation but about a mission of listening to help. It is about Pope Francis' efforts to understand how to help Ukraine implement the 10-step peace plan. We are grateful to His Eminence Mateo Zuppi for the fact that after meeting with the President of Ukraine, with representatives of churches and religious organizations, he was concerned about one of the greatest pains and challenges of our homeland - the rescue of Ukrainian children who were forcibly taken from their homeland by Russian criminals," said His Beatitude Sviatoslav.
The head of the UGCC noted that the cardinal was in Ukraine just when the Russians committed another war crime by blowing up the Kakhovka hydroelectric power station.
"Therefore, he will bring news to the Holy Father and the world about new challenges and, at the same time, new opportunities to stop the murderous hand of the Russian aggressor," the Head of the UGCC emphasized.