“President [Volodymyr] Zelenskyy asked me for my view of the subject of peace in the Donbas. I could see that this question is of concern to the president, and that he believes the question of the war is his most important challenge. The question of war and peace is of concern to us as well, and we have been speaking about it for these five years, appealing first and foremost to the international community. …We understand that no matter how we try to heal the wounds of war, this will not have a definitive result until the aggressor stops inflicting those wounds. …
“Peace cannot mean capitulation and consent to the conditions of the aggressor. This would be an imitation of peace, and the effect would be even worse than the effects of war. For peace to be real, it must be just. Otherwise, this will simply be a change in the methods of how wounds are inflicted on our people.
“We know from history that appeasing an aggressor fuels his appetite. It is very important to speak about the pain of our people and, even while we are negotiating with the aggressor, to remember the eyes of the mother who lost her son in the war. We must be the voice of the people who have suffered. …That is why I tried, in responding to Mr. Zelenskyy’s request, to speak in the name of those for whom this war is causing suffering, and to convey what a real peace must be.”
– Patriarch Sviatoslav, head of the Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Church, speaking in an interview with censor.net, as reported by the Ukrainian Canadian Congress Daily Briefing on August 15.