Vatican seeks to calm outrage over Pope’s praise for Russia’s imperial past

The Vatican has sought to calm the uproar that erupted after Pope Francis praised Russia’s imperialist past during a video conference with Russian Catholics youths

The Vatican has sought to calm the uproar that erupted after Pope Francis praised Russia’s imperialist past during a video conference with Russian Catholics youths, insisting that he never intended to encourage modern-day Russian aggression in Ukraine.

Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni said on Tuesday that Francis merely wanted to highlight the positive aspects of Russia’s spiritual and cultural history when he praised Russia’s imperial rulers Peter and Catherine the Great, encouraging young people to remember that past and hailing their way of “being Russian”.