Russian embassy sends anniversary wishes to Pope Francis

(ANSA) - ROME, MAR 13 - The Russian Embassy to the Holy See on Wednesday expressed its best wishes to Pope Francis on the 11th anniversary of his election to the papacy.
    In a post on X it described the 87-year-old pontiff as "a true defender of humanism, peace and traditional values".
    The Pope "is one of the few leaders with a truly strategic perspective on world problems", it added.
    The message comes against the backdrop of recent controversy over an interview by the pope on Ukraine.
    The pope used the image of a white flag in an interview with Radio Télévision Suisse (RTS) to call on Kyiv to have the courage of negotiation to end the war by the Russian invasion in February 2022.
    The Vatican subsequently clarified that Francis was not asking Ukraine to surrender.
    However, Kyiv reacted angrily, with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba saying on X that his country would never raise any flag other than its national flag in yellow and blue.
    "Our flag is yellow and blue. This is the flag with which we live, die and win. We will never raise any other flag," said Kuleba.
    On Wednesday Italian Deputy Premier and Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani told La7 he thought "Francis was just being the pope, he gave a message of peace".
    "It was made clear that the pope wants peace and was not siding with Russia," he added. (ANSA).