Former Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy praised Pope Francis on Wednesday for his “boldness” in calling for an end to the war in Ukraine after the pair met at the Vatican.

“It was my honor to meet Pope Francis in person today,” Ramaswamy posted to X with a picture of the two men. “He shows his human side & it’s inspiring. I respect his boldness in publicly calling for peace in Ukraine.”

Ramaswamy’s admiration for the pope comes as Francis continues to receive backlash for an interview in which he encouraged Ukrainian leaders to come to the negotiation table and conduct peace talks.

“I think that the strongest one is the one who looks at the situation, thinks about the people and has the courage of the white flag, and negotiates,” Francis said in an interview released in March.

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The Vatican secretary of state, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, has since declared that Russia, as the aggressor, should “should first and foremost cease fire.”

“The war unleashed against Ukraine is not the effect of an uncontrollable natural disaster but of human freedom alone, and the same human will that caused this tragedy also has the possibility and responsibility to take steps to put an end to it and pave the way to a diplomatic solution,” Parolin said.