European bishops address 'rising tensions' as Trump talks to Putin, Zelenskyy

(OSV News) -- As President Donald Trump held new talks with Russia's President Vladimir Putin March 18, followed by a call with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of Ukraine March 19, bishops across Europe expressed alarm at current geopolitical developments.

The head of Ukraine's Greek Catholic Church in Ukraine has spoken out against ceding territory to Russia as part of peace negotiations. In an interview with the Italian daily Il Foglio March 18, Major Archbishop Sviatoslav Shevchuk of Kyiv-Halych said that the Russian aggression against Ukraine was not only about territorial gains, but also about the people living in the territories.

"Evil can neither be pacified nor satisfied," Major Archbishop Shevchuk said. "It must be stopped. And that is exactly what we are doing and paying for it with our blood."

The prelate emphasized that "if evil is not punished, sooner or later it will revive with even more vigor and even more dramatic consequences," warning against "an illusion of peace."

In a March 18 readout of Trump's call with Putin, the White House said, "Both leaders agreed this conflict needs to end with a lasting peace."

According to the statement, the two leaders "stressed the need for improved bilateral relations between the United States and Russia.The blood and treasure that both Ukraine and Russia have been spending in this war would be better spent on the needs of their people."

Following the March 19 conversation with Zelenskyy, Trump said in a social media post that the call was to “align both Russia and Ukraine in terms of their requests and needs."

Major Archbishop Shevchuk in his interview said that it was worrying for the Ukrainian people that Russian propaganda was now being repeated even in the West. "If our resistance is judged according to the categories of Russian propaganda, we are worried not only about ourselves, but about the future of humanity."

Meanwhile, the Polish bishops meeting in their March plenary in Warsaw urged prayers for current efforts to end the bloody Ukraine war, but also stressed the need to "define the principles of a just peace."

Prominent lay Catholics in the region said that they are worried about what they see as a loss of trust in their continent's traditional U.S. ally.

"When Trump was elected, he was viewed positively in clergy circles here, as a conservative seeking to rein in a radical leftist revolution," said Marcin Przeciszewski, chief editor of Poland's influential Catholic Information Agency.

"Such confidence is now drastically diminished because of his actions over Ukraine, which clearly reflect in large part the interests of Russia."

A fellow editor in Britain, whose government has led calls for European rearmament, told OSV News many Catholics feared current uncertainties and were seeking pastoral guidance.

"Besides a massive increase in defense spending, there's talk of bringing back military conscription -- all of which contradicts past appeals by the pope," said Josephine Siedlecka, editor of the London-based Independent Catholic News.

"With Europe preparing for war, our bishops should be speaking out -- not aggressively, just reflecting on what Jesus would say," she said.

The exchanges took place as Trump held telephone talks March 18 with Putin amid continuing efforts to secure a 30-day ceasefire in the war, which has left hundreds of thousands dead and wounded.

Putin agreed during a phone call with Trump to temporarily halt strikes on Ukrainian energy infrastructure, according to the Kremlin, as reported by The New York Times, but did not agree to the unconditional 30-day ceasefire that Ukraine had already agreed to.

Uncertainties also continued over NATO's military preparedness as European heads of government discussed a peacekeeping mission, after pledging $876 billion March 4 for a "ReArm Europe" plan.

In a March 12 communique, Italy's Catholic bishops called on governments to avoid "warlike rhetoric," and said current concerns over security and defense should not "become the drumbeats of war." The Italian bishops dwelled on "rising tensions and the increasingly aggressive, violent and divisive language of international politics."

The German bishops' conference warned of "high global political tensions," as
they feared Ukraine is being forced into unjustified concessions to secure a short-term peace deal with Russia and that Ukraine "threatens to become a victim of the global turnaround," the bishops said in a March 13 statement after their spring plenary.

The statement circulated as German parliamentarians approved a massive increase in military spending March 18.

Russia has continued missile attacks on Ukrainian cities, while making slow battlefield gains, following a temporary early March suspension of U.S. military and intelligence aid for Kyiv.

In a March 17 statement, the Vatican press office said President Zelenskyy had explained the ceasefire initiative during March 14 telephone talks with Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Vatican secretary of state, adding that the Holy See hoped all parties would "seize the opportunity for a sincere dialogue, free from any preconditions, aimed at achieving a just and lasting peace."

The president of the Nordic bishops' conference, Norwegian Bishop Erik Varden of Trondheim, said Europeans were being forced "to rethink everything," and should mobilize around common values "more essential than the stocking of arms." The Nordic conference, comprising bishops from Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden, held its plenary March 10-14.

In her OSV News interview, Siedlecka said she would be "among those making Molotov cocktails in their kitchens" if Russia invaded her country.

However, she added that she feared arms industries would seek to profit from current rearmament and urged bishops across Europe to stand against a new drift to war.

Przeciszewski told OSV News "the pope has appealed to all sides to spend less on arms," but "if Russia doesn't wish to listen, there is no other option. We have a right to defend ourselves against potential threats from our enemies."