Ukraine backs Pope’s call for Olympic truce in war with Russia

KYIV, Feb 7 (Reuters) – Ukraine has backed a call for a ceasefire in the war with Russia during the Winter Olympics after Italy and Pope Leo urged world leaders to use the Milano Cortina games to further peace.

Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha told Reuters that Ukraine supported the proposal during the February 6–22 Winter Olympics and a corresponding United Nations resolution calling for a global truce. He said it was up to Russia to clarify its position.

“We support this appeal,” he said in an interview in Kyiv. “We are interested in a ceasefire and if Russia once again rejects, it will once again confirm who is the obstacle for peace and who wants to continue this war.”

Pope Leo on Sunday invoked what he said was the ancient tradition of the Olympic truce and called on people in positions of power to take real steps towards de-escalation and dialogue in the name of peace.

Ukraine is locked in brutal fighting with Russia nearly four years after Moscow’s troops poured over the border in a full-scale invasion in February 2022. Russian forces occupy nearly a fifth of Ukraine and have been bombarding the power grid.

The United States is trying to broker a settlement and has held rounds of talks between Ukraine and Russia in an effort to end the war.

“Let’s stop and it will definitely open a path for broader peace negotiations,” Sybiha said.

(Reporting by Tom Balmforth and Daniel Flynn; Editing by Toby Chopra)