Bangladesh, March 23 -- Pope Francis has one again called on Ukraine to begin negotiations with Moscow towards a peace deal: “Let us never forget war is always a defeat. One cannot go on in war. We must make every effort to negotiate to end the war.” This has sparked a wave of fury and anti-Catholic speech in Ukraine. Earlier this month, the Pope had stated Kyiv should “have the courage to raise the white flag and to negotiate”. In an interview last month, he said “When you see that you are defeated, that things are not going well, you have to have the courage to negotiate.”

The Popes call is far from absurd. Even NATOs former Supreme Commander, James Stavridis, has called for a land-for-peace deal for...