International Religious Experts Condemn Russia’s War Against Ukraine
The panel discussion took place in Tokyo, Japan, as part of the conference “Finding Reconciliation in Time of War,” where participants are debating global humanitarian crises in the world in general and Ukraine in particular from February 18–22, 2024.
It is the second time that the Tokyo International Peace Roundtable, initiated by the World Interreligious Platform Religions for Peace (WCRP), has brought together representatives of the public sector, non-governmental organizations, and world religions from four continents: Europe, Latin America, the Middle East, and Asia.
According to statistics, today, more than 360 million people in the world need humanitarian aid, of which more than 110 million are internally displaced persons as a result of war, persecution, or human rights violations. That is why the interreligious platform Religions for Peace, in cooperation with the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations, has launched a discussion with representatives of different religions of the world who have experience in ministering to their peoples from more than 20 countries.
With the blessing of the Head of the UGCC, His Beatitude Sviatoslav, the head of the Commission on Interfaith and Interreligious Relations, Protopriest Ihor Shaban, is taking part in the conference. In his speech, the priest pointed out to the international community that “the unjust and unprovoked war that Russia started two years ago against peaceful Ukraine has caused thousands of deaths and continues to destroy homes, schools, hospitals, and churches. What is worse, all this is supported by the Russian religious structure — the ROCMP, which proposed the genocidal ideology of the ‘Russian world’ and passed it into the hands of the criminal Russian authorities, which use this tool to destroy Ukrainians.” The priest emphasized that today’s Russian aggression “is a great challenge not only for all of Christianity but also for other religions of the world.”
During their stay in the Japanese capital, the members of the Ukrainian delegation met with parliamentarians and the public and were received by Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Ukraine to Japan Serhiy Korsunsky.
Reference
The World Organization “Religions for Peace” is one of the largest interfaith platforms with a decade of experience in facilitation and the art of dialogue, working in more than 90 countries. This time, the organizers tried to establish a “safe space” where representatives of different religions and non-governmental organizations from more than 20 countries could gather to discuss current issues, think critically, and look for ways to resolve existing conflicts on the planet peacefully.
The UGCC Department for Information
