Zelensky invites pope to Ukraine during first phone call

 

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Monday invited Pope Leo XIV to Ukraine during their first phone call, in which he also thanked the newly installed pontiff for urging peace in Ukraine.

 

“I invited His Holiness to make an apostolic visit to Ukraine. Such a visit would bring real hope to all believers, to all our people,” Zelensky said in a post on social media.

 

The two leaders also discussed “the thousands of Ukrainian children deported by Russia”, Zelensky said, adding that Kyiv was counting on the Vatican’s help in returning them home.

 

“No more war!” Leo had urged from the balcony of St Peter’s Basilica to thousands gathered to hear his first prayer on Sunday.

 

He appealed for a “genuine, just and lasting peace” in Ukraine, echoing his predecessor Francis.

Francis, who never visited Ukraine, had sparked frustration through his failure to clearly condemn Russia for the invasion and by calling for Ukraine to raise the “white flag”.

 

Kyiv however had recognised the Vatican’s efforts in mediating prisoner exchanges and the return of children taken to Russia from occupied parts of Ukraine.

 

Zelensky also said that he had told Leo about a joint ceasefire offer by Ukraine and its allies and that the two had agreed to “plan an in-person meeting in the near future”.

AFP