Throughout his common normal viewers on August 24, Pope Francis condemned the automotive bomb homicide of Daria Dugina. She was the daughter of Alexander Dugin, a Russian thinker and affiliate of Putin with excessive nationalist positions and ties to extremist actions in Europe.

And particularly, the Pope mentioned: “I consider all of the cruelty – of so many innocents who pay the value of this insanity. The insanity is on all sides, as a result of struggle is insanity and nobody who’s at struggle can say: ” No, I’m not loopy”. Conflict is insanity. I consider a poor lady who was blown up by a bomb underneath her automotive seat in Moscow. The harmless pay for the struggle. The harmless”.

Among the many first to protest have been Dmytro Kuleba, the Ukrainian overseas minister, and Andrii Yuras, the Ukrainian ambassador to the Holy See. In a tweet, the ambassador mentioned that the pope’s speech was “disappointing” and that one can’t put “the aggressor and the sufferer” in the identical class.

Among the many sharp reactions was that of the previous Polish ambassador to the Vatican (2013-2016) Peter Nowina-Konopka, who wrote an open letter to Pope Francis. In it he writes:

“I share with all my coronary heart, Your Holiness, your phrases in regards to the folly of struggle, about resisting the atrocities dedicated (by all sides) in opposition to kids, prisoners, and civilians who don’t participate within the struggle. Nonetheless, I consider that “guilt” is distributed inconsistently, simply as Abel’s cross just isn’t synonymous with Cain’s cross.

To begin with, I don’t perceive the designation of the sufferer of the terrorist act in Moscow, Ms. Daria Dugina, as an “harmless sufferer”. This younger man – and never solely her father – was exactly one of many leaders who insisted on struggle and the deprivation of Ukrainians’ nationwide id, independence and freedom, utilizing the sick ideology of the “Russian world” and the specter of harmful weapons. It’s true {that a} terrorist assault can’t be an acceptable response to this. However, for my part, it’s not an acceptable response to name lively ideologues and propagandists “harmless victims”.

Furthermore, the perpetrators of the assault haven’t but been recognized. An necessary function of the present preach is that the Pope avoids performing as a choose – sadly, the phrases spoken within the Vatican have been felt to be simply that. And that’s the reason they prompted such ache to our Ukrainian brothers and to many individuals of excellent will. The aggressor doesn’t deserve the title “harmless sufferer”.

With highest respect, Peter Nowina-Konopka, Ambassador of Poland to the Holy See 2013-2016.”