World Evangelical Alliance: Call on Russia to withdraw its troops from Ukraine

09. März 2023

On the eve of the partnership summit "Global Church Response in Ukraine and Beyond", to be held on March 1-3, the World Evangelical Alliance, the European Evangelical Alliance and the Council of Evangelical Protestant Churches of Ukraine issued a joint statement on the anniversary of the Russian invasion.This is stated on their Facebook page. "A year has passed since Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The World Evangelical Alliance, together with the European Evangelical Alliance and the Council of evangelical Protestant Churches of Ukraine, condemns the aggression, expresses gratitude to everyone who serves the victims, and encourages all evangelical Christians to follow Jesus even in the maelstrom of military events.

First of all, we repeat our call for the immediate withdrawal of all Russian troops from the internationally recognized borders of Ukraine, because this is the fastest way to end the war. The invasion of the territory of Ukraine was unjustified and unprovoked. Claims that the attack was necessary to protect ethnic Russians in Ukraine are outright lies. Therefore, we pray that no world leader will encourage such acts of aggression, but will have the wisdom to find solutions for the sake of restoring a just peace.

Over the past twelve months, millions of Ukrainians have been forced to leave their homes, lost relatives and friends, and suffered other devastating consequences of the war. So here's our word to all those who are grieving and struggling with the most difficult circumstances: we sympathize with you. We pray tirelessly that peace will come as soon as possible, that the time for your healing and recovery will come, and that even in the midst of pain, you will feel that God is now near you (Psalm 34:18)..."

World Evangelical Alliance covers more than 600 million Christians and 143 national evangelical alliances. Since its founding in London in 1846, this inter-church body has brought together evangelical believers from different denominations for the sake of prayer, preaching the Gospel, missionary work, promoting theological education, protecting religious freedoms, and engaging in a wide range of social issues. This makes it possible, both publicly and through diplomacy on a personal level, to reach out jointly to the United Nations, governments, and the media on issues related to the church.

European Evangelical Alliance was founded in 1951 to promote interaction and be the United Voice of 23 million evangelical believers from 36 European countries. Its goal is to unite Christians for cooperation, equip them to fulfill a holistic mission and voice a common position. In particular, the Brussels office of the Alliance constantly defends the views of representatives of the evangelical movement before pan-European institutions. (Quelle: www.risu.ua, 1. März 2023)