Andrea Tornielli, who has been described as the Pope’s favourite journalist, has suggested that opposition to Francis is linked to Vladimir Putin.
Tornielli makes the suggestion in a piece co-written with Giacomo Galeazzi for the Italian newspaper La Stampa. It is headlined “Catholics who are anti-Francis but love Putin”.
The article quotes sociologist Massimo Introvigne as saying: “It is the mythical idealization of Russian President Vladimir Putin, who is presented as a ‘good’ leader in contrast to the ‘bad’ leader, the Pope, because of his stance on homosexual people, Muslims and immigrants. Russian foundations that have strong ties with Putin co-operate with the anti-Francis opposition.”
