Pope faces criticism for telling Russian youths to remember 'legacy' of a 'great empire'

Pope Francis is facing criticism for telling Russian youths to not give up their "legacy" as heirs of a "great, enlightened Russian empire", referring to the heirs of past tsars such as Peter the Great. Notably, President Vladimir Putin hails them and holds them up as an example to justify the "special military operation" in Ukraine.

On Friday, Pope Francis told young Russians, who were gathered for the All-Russian Meeting of Catholic Youth in St. Petersburg that "never give up this legacy, you are the heirs of the great Mother Russia, go forward with it".

Pope said, "Don't forget (your) heredity. You are heirs of the great Russia - the great Russia of the saints, of kings, the great Russia of Peter the Great, of Catherine II, the great Russian empire, cultured, so much culture, so much humanity. You are the heirs of the great mother Russia. Go forward." He was reading the prepared speech in Spanish, but switched in between and started speaking in Italian.

The prepared text of the address was released by the Vatican, but it did not include the last, improvised paragraph. Ukraine responded to the comments, calling them "deeply regrettable".

Oleg Nikolenko, who is the spokesperson for the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry, said on Facebook: "It is precisely with such imperialist propaganda, the 'spiritual ties' and the 'need' to save 'great Mother Russia' that the Kremlin justifies the killing of thousands of Ukrainians and the destruction of Ukrainian cities and villages."

"It is deeply regrettable that such notions of being a great power, which contributes, in essence, to Russia's chronic aggressiveness, are voiced by the pope, either knowingly or unknowingly," Nikolenko added.

Meanwhile, Archbishop Sviatoslav Shevchuk, who is head of Ukraine's Eastern Rite Catholic Church, said in a statement that the Pope's words had caused "great pain and worry" and feared they could "inspire the neo-colonial ambitions of the aggressor country".

Previously, the Pope haddenounced the ongoing war in Ukraine, which has killed hundreds and displaced millions, leading to global issues of migration and food security. He even called Russia's actions in Ukraine brutal, cruel and ferocious and said that the invasion violated a country's right to self-determination.

During his Christmas message, he called for ending the "senseless" war and further warned that the ongoing war has aggravated food shortage in the world, and appealed to the leaders not to use "food as a weapon” for war.

(With inputs from agencies)

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