Pope Francis for the first time directly begged Russian President Vladimir Putin to stop the “spiral of violence and death” in Ukraine, saying on Sunday that the crisis was risking a nuclear escalation with uncontrollable global consequences.
In an address dedicated to Ukraine and made to thousands of people in St. Peter’s Square, Francis also condemned Putin’s latest annexation of parts of Ukraine as being against international law. He urged Putin to think of his own people in the event of an escalation.