Pope says Vatican involved in Ukraine, Russia peace mission
The pope’s comment comes hours after Moscow said its troops have advanced into the frontline city of Bakhmut.
The Vatican is involved in a peacekeeping mission to try to end the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, Pope Francis said, without giving further details.
“I am ready to do whatever needs to be done. A mission is underway now, but it is not yet public. When it is public, I will reveal it,” the pope told reporters on a flight home from a three day visit to Hungary.
“I think peace is always made by opening channels. You can never achieve peace through closure… This is not easy.”
The pope added that he had discussed the situation in Ukraine with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban and Metropolitan Hilarion, a bishop who represents the Russian Orthodox Church in Budapest.
“During these meetings we didn’t just talk about Little Red Riding Hood. We talked about all these things. Everyone is interested in the road to peace,” he said.
Since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, Pope Francis has practically weekly pleaded for peace and repeatedly expressed a desire to act as a mediator between Kiev and Moscow. His offer has so far not led to a breakthrough.
Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal met the pope at the Vatican on Thursday and said he had discussed a “peace formula” proposed by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. He said he had also invited the pope to visit Kiev.
The 86-year-old Pope Francis has previously said that he wants to visit Kiev but also Moscow for a peacekeeping mission.
Four more quarters in Bakhmut
The pope’s announcement comes hours after Moscow claimed its troops had taken control of four more urban districts in the Ukrainian frontline city of Bakhmut.
The Russian Defense Ministry said units of the airborne troops detained Ukrainian troops in the northern and southern suburbs of the city.
Ukraine did not immediately respond to the claims.
Russian forces have been trying for months to take Bakhmut, a transport and logistics hub in Ukraine’s Donetsk province, part of the largely Russian-speaking industrialized Donbas region.
Tens of thousands have been killed, millions uprooted and entire cities razed to the ground during the war in Ukraine.