The Polish diplomat pointed out that the Holy Father first referred to the departure of his predecessor Benedict XVI, then recalled the foundations of peace and underlined the important role of the family, the need to protect human life from conception to natural death, and the great importance of caring for children, as they are the future of society.

– All the time, and not just today, you can actually hear that in many parts of the world we are facing World War III, that conflicts are brewing, which – hopefully not – but can transform into broader armed conflicts, with even greater involvement of the various parties. The Holy Father spoke about it and warned against it. He also pointed out that we should take all kinds of measures to counter this, Ambassador Kwiatkowski stressed.

He added that “the conflict that is closest to our hearts, because it is taking place just beyond the Polish borders, is of course the conflict in Ukraine linked to Russian aggression, because our Ukrainian neighbors are dying there. We have said that people were dying there, it was said that often these people do not die because of the armed conflict itself, but they die because they have no heating, they have no food and of drink, because they are suffering because those who attack them are destroying essential infrastructure, cutting them off from the immediate amenities necessary for life, especially now in winter.

– I conveyed to the Holy Father the greetings of President Andrzej Duda, I sent him my best wishes for health and the blessing of God. The Holy Father asked to thank the president and to greet him with New Year’s wishes, the Polish diplomat said.