俄罗斯和梵蒂冈关系的未来：期待教宗方济各访问莫斯科
今天上午俄罗斯外交部长拉夫罗夫与圣座国务卿帕罗林枢机举行了友好会谈。在反恐、叙利亚、维护受迫害基督徒权益等方面双方有深切共识。在乌克兰问题上有所“分歧”。继哈瓦那会见之后，期待教宗方济各与莫斯科牧首基里尔之间再次见面。
莫斯科（亚洲新闻）— 今天上午，俄罗斯外交部长拉夫罗夫（Sergej Lavrov）与圣座国务卿帕罗林枢机（card. Pietro Parolin）举行了会谈。在双方会谈后联合举行的新闻发布会上，宣称双方在一些国际政治重大话题方面有深切的共鸣，为日后关系的发展打开了许多期望。拉夫罗夫首先简短回忆了俄罗斯与梵蒂冈自十五世纪至今的关系往来历史，并列举了近期俄罗斯联邦与圣座之间深化关系的一系列举措，比如在罗马举办的关于俄罗斯圣像传统到前卫艺术的文化遗产展览、双方在医疗和教育领域的共同项目、关于帮助罹患罕见病症的儿童关爱项目，等等。他还宣布，双方就对持有梵蒂冈外交护照的代表人员免入境签证的问题达成了一致。
俄罗斯外交部长一一列举了他与梵蒂冈客人讨论的国际政治话题：近东的国际局势，包括叙利亚、伊拉克、也门和利比亚的情形，以及委内瑞拉的国内冲突。拉夫罗夫感谢了梵蒂冈在诸如打击恐怖主义和极端主义方面支持俄罗斯的立场，特别是在错综复杂的叙利亚问题上。在巴勒斯坦和以色列关系问题上，双方也显示了充分的一致；特别要感谢圣座对于在乌克兰停火的明斯克协议上表示出的支持。拉夫罗夫说，“该等支持不仅是道义上的，而且，对饱受战火蹂躏的顿涅斯克（Donetsk）和卢甘斯克（Lugansk）地区的民众提供了切实的人道主义支持。俄罗斯外长还补充说，俄罗斯和梵蒂冈都支持“解决乌克兰的冲突，反对将宗教别有用心地服务于政治目的”。
另一方面，梵蒂冈的国务卿首先感谢了俄罗斯的盛情接待，并提醒说他此行的目的是“表达教宗方济各对目前国际局势的热点问题的关切”。他也确认了对双方在文化、科研和医疗等领域合作协议感到满意，并期待将来在这些领域更深化发展。帕罗林枢机还表示，对梵蒂冈外交人员赋予免签待遇，有助于进一步促进天主教会在俄罗斯的活动，改善教会人员的工作条件，并共同解决目前面临的其他一些问题。
在国际政治问题上，帕罗林枢机表示他“赞赏在近东、乌克兰和其他国家的行之有效的解决之道”。他强调说，圣座的首要优先目标是改善受苦民众的生活条件，并邀请有关方面共同寻求切实的解决途径，不要受信息操纵的影响。关于棘手的克里米亚归属问题，帕罗林枢机敦促俄罗斯重新考虑与国际法相冲突的决定，争取寻求与邻近国家以及国际社会和谐一致的解决方案。在这个问题上，红衣主教坦率地表明了他与俄罗斯立场的“分歧”，但同时他又提醒双方在保障世界许多国家受迫害的基督徒方面有着充分的共识。
在回答一个记者关于教宗是否可能访问俄罗斯的问题，帕罗林枢机重申了哈瓦那会见的重要性，也谈到了最近圣尼各老的遗骨在俄罗斯展出接受信众瞻仰的实例，并确认今后在这些领域还将深化类似的合作发展。他说：“我们向圣灵托付这些计划的切实执行。肯定的是存在有积极的动力，在将来会让我们发现这股积极动力会把双方带到什么地方。”
Interviews in the build up to the visit had seen the recurring question of a papal visit addressed several times to Card. Pietro Parolin. The opportunity afforded by the official visit of the Vatican Secretary of State to Moscow, the first after nearly 20 years. In 1999, his predecessor, Cardinal Angelo Sodano, made every attempt to open the doors of the Kremlin to John Paul II, but without results. The response still seem negative; but, as is the case in the world of information, the succession of denials increases the conviction that the news may be forthcoming. Cardinal Parolin's response, after meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov, is deliberately evasive and generous, without giving anything away about an imminent possibility.
Moreover, despite the skepticism, signs of a possible trip by Pope Francis the fog of diplomatic hesitation emerge from the Patriarchate of Moscow, beginning from the historic meeting of Havana with the Russian Patriarch Kirill in February 2016. On that occasion, the Pope was welcomed by the patriarch in neutral territory, but very familiar to the Russians, Havana's Soviet-style airport and the company of a historic communist figure such as Raul Castro. The next day, Kirill went to visit Fidel himself, who was already ailing, to celebrate the historic success of the meeting with him.
From Havana to the next meeting
After the Cuban embrace, the Holy See activated a very significant change in Russia: instead of the Slovenian nuncio, Msgr. Ivan Jurkovic, who was awarded with the UN headquarters in Geneva, Archbishop Celestino Migliore, a diplomat Vatican was plucked from a very authoritative career, parallel to that of the same Card. Parolin, and signaled out for Russia. He became well-known in 2002 when it was sent to the UN headquarters in New York, representing the Vatican at the highest levels. In 2003, he went to Moscow to discuss issues of international politics with the Russians, including the situation in Vietnam, on a mission prepared in tandem with Parolin, then Substitute of the Secretariat of State. His experience was then made available to the new Vatican Ostpolitik, which began under Benedict XVI and has been vigorously strengthened by Pope Francis: Migliore was nuncio to Poland during the phase of retirement of Cracow Cardinal Stanislaw Dziwisz (former secretary to St. Pope John Paul II), and from May 2016 he has in Moscow to work for the follow-up to the Havana talks.
Before Migliore, in November 2015, it was the turn of Msgr. Claudio Gugerotti, one of the most competent Vatican officials in Eastern European issues, coming from specific studies and serving in the Congregation for Oriental Churches. Very close to Enzo Bianchi, and to the ultra-ecumenical positions of the Bose community which he regularly attended, Gugerotti took the place of Monsignor Thomas Gullikson, an American Archbishop, nuncio to Kiev since 2011, who during the crisis between Ukraine and Moscow was a bit too unbalanced in favor of the Majdan movement, creating a few ill feeling in Russia. Since the arrival of Gugerotti, the Patriarchate of Moscow has not missed the opportunity to thank the Holy See for its neutrality in Ukrainian affairs, as Hilarion stated in the meeting yesterday with Card. Parolin.
The same cardinal carried out an official visit to Ukraine in June 2016, where he obviously failed to pay tribute to Majdan Square and its victor, President Poroshenko, but the most interesting part of the trip was the visit to Zaporizhia, a town in the eastern part of the country, in Donbass partially controlled by Russian "volunteer" militias. By bringing humanitarian aid and comfort to the local population, severely challenged by the conflict, the cardinal assured them that the pope himself had a great desire to visit those areas. A meeting of Francis and Kirill in Ukraine divided by the epochal confrontation between East and West would be a gesture of incomparable historical and symbolic value.
"Cheering" for Francis to come to Russia
In January this year, the Archbishop of Moscow, Msgr. Paolo Pezzi, made very optimistic statements about the Pope's possible trip to Russian soil: "It seems to me that after Cuba, that is, after the reactions that were not easy for the Orthodox Church in Russia, today we can speak about a possible visit by the Pope to Russia. When? I do not know when. But I do think that it is no longer viewed as problematic "said the bishop of the Archdiocese of the Mother of God in Moscow, intervening at the margins of the Catholic Forum in Rome.
According to Msgr. Pezzi, the negative reactions among Russian Orthodox after Cuba's meeting "were not so many, but they were very noisy. It is gone. And this has allowed the Patriarch, but also others, to return to the reasons for that encounter. And they were convincing. You can also continue to discuss whether the meeting was political, cultural, religious but certainly this wave that has had a very strong impact has swept over it all and has left greater tranquility for a possible trip by Francis to Russia. We are cheering for it. " The Pope in this regard - he pointed - "has always been discreet. I never heard him say 'I wish I could come.' He would surely like to meet Patriarch Kirill. And if this happens in Moscow, in Rome, it would be equally ok anywhere. But he is very discreet, and will not force it."
Card. Parolin’s visit has also provoked negative comments in Russian society especially from the most radical members of "nationalist" orthodoxy: the cardinal is seen as the usual Catholic invader who comes to conquer Russia with the subtle weapons of Jesuit diplomacy. Even local Catholics, by the mouth of the secretary of the Russian bishops Msgr. Igor Kovalevski, believe that a visit by Francis to Moscow would be premature, fearing the reactions of Orthodox clergy, politics and society, which today suffers from a Western phobia, especially because of the "war of sanctions" .
However, Patriarch Kirill has shown that he is able to handle these situations in a brilliant way, without being subjected to his most intransigent collaborators, such as Bishop Tikhon (Ševkunov), "Putin’s confessor" who, more than anyone cried traitor after the meeting in Havana. As Cardinal Parolin has said, any surprises are entrusted to the work of the Holy Spirit.
