Russia Welcomes the Vatican’s Willingness to Contribute to Peace
St. Peter’s Dome, Vatican City, X/ @archaeologyart
May 21, 2025 Hour: 10:18 am
U.S. President Trump called the idea of the Vatican hosting peace talks ‘a great idea.’
On Wednesday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Russia welcomes any country’s willingness to contribute to a peaceful resolution of the conflict in Ukraine, referring to the Vatican’s readiness to host the next round of negotiations between Russian and Ukrainian representatives.
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“Traditionally, of course, we welcome the willingness of all those countries that want to contribute to a prompt resolution,” Peskov said, noting that the parties involved have not yet made a decision on the location of the next round of talks.
Direct negotiations between Moscow and Kyiv resumed last Friday in Istanbul after a three-year pause, but no agreement was reached on a cease-fire.
On Tuesday, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni held a phone conversation with Pope Leo XIV, who confirmed the Vatican’s readiness to host the negotiations. This came after a phone call on Monday with U.S. President Donald Trump and other European leaders, during which Meloni was asked to verify the Holy See’s willingness to host the talks.
Pope Leo XIV made the offer during meetings with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, with whom he spoke by phone a few days after his election on May 8 and whom he also received on Sunday after the Mass marking the beginning of his pontificate.
After his own conversation Monday with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Trump called the idea of the Vatican hosting the potential peace talks between Russia and Ukraine “a great idea,” noting that there is a lot of “anger” between the parties and that the symbolism of the location could help.
Zelenskyy also approved of the idea: “The Vatican is ready to send out the invitations and organize the meeting with all of us, including the Europeans.”
In a world “at war,” building peace is a duty, Pope Leo XIV said on Wednesday during his first general audience in St. Peter’s Square before thousands of cheering faithful.
teleSUR/ JF
Source: EFE
