Pope Francis’ statement that Ukraine should have the “courage of the white flag” in order to negotiate an end to the war with Russia has ignited a storm of criticism by Ukrainian and allied officials — some of whom invoked the specter of World War II appeasement of Nazi Germany. A Vatican spokesman quickly walked back the statement Saturday, saying Francis supported “a stop to hostilities (and) a truce achieved with the courage of negotiations,” rather than a Ukrainian surrender, which many took it to mean. But Ukrainian and Polish officials pilloried the remarks, which the pope made in an interview with Swiss broadcaster RSI that was recorded last month and partially released Saturday. “The strongest is the one who, in the battle between good and evil, stands on the side of good rather than attempting to put them on the same footing and call it ‘negotiations,’” Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said in a Sunday post on X. Read more at https://nypost.com/2024/03/10/world-news/popes-white-flag-ukraine-comment-compared-to-nazi-appeasement/ #popefrancis #ukraine #russia The New York Post is your source for breaking news, news about New York, sports, business, entertainment, opinion, real estate, culture, fashion, and more. Subscribe to New York Post Sports: https://www.youtube.com/c/nypostsports Catch the latest news here: https://nypost.com/ Follow The New York Post on: Twitter - https://twitter.com/nypost Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/NYPost