Vatican could host Russia-Ukraine peace talks, Pope Leo tells Zelensky

VATICAN CITY – Pope Leo told visiting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on July 8 that the Vatican is willing to host Russia-Ukraine peace talks, the Vatican said in a statement.

The Pope, meeting the Ukrainian leader for the second time in his two-month-old papacy, also discussed with Mr Zelensky “the urgent need for a just and lasting peace”, the statement said.

Mr Zelensky and Pope Leo held talks

in Castel Gandolfo, a small Italian hill town not far from Rome, where the Pope is taking a two-week vacation.

The Ukrainian leader is in Italy to attend a conference on July 10 to 11 dedicated to Ukraine’s recovery and long-term reconstruction following Russia’s invasion.

The Vatican did not say how long the meeting between Pope Leo and Mr Zelensky lasted. It released a video showing Pope Leo, the first US pontiff, asking Mr Zelensky, “How are things going?” in English as the two sat in a large room together.

Pope Leo, who has made

appealing for peace in world conflicts

a major theme of his young papacy, previously met Mr Zelensky at the Vatican on May 18.

The Pope also held a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin on June 4, during which the Vatican said he had asked Mr Putin to take concrete steps to end Russia’s bloody three-year war on Ukraine.

US President Donald Trump suggested in May that Pope Leo had offered to host Ukraine-Russia peace talks, but the Pope had not previously spoken about the possibility of such a summit.

Russian officials had previously told Reuters that they do not see the Vatican as a serious venue for talks because the Holy See is surrounded by Nato member Italy, which has supported Ukraine and taken part in European Union sanctions against Russia. REUTERS