The Ukrainian president also met Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni earlier on Saturday. Read more at straitstimes.com.
, and the pope indicated the Vatican would help in the repatriation of Ukrainian children taken by Russians.
A Vatican statement said that in their private talks, Zelensky and the pope discussed “humanitarian gestures”, which a Vatican source said was a reference to the Vatican’s willingness to help with the repatriation of Ukrainian children. At the start of the war, the pope tried to take a balanced approach in hopes of being a mediator but later began forcefully condemning Russia’s actions, comparing them to some of the worst crimes against Ukraine during the Soviet era.
But the Vatican statement made no mention of any such mission and later in an Italian television interview Zelensky appeared to rule out a mediation outside of Kyiv’s own peace plan. “Putin only kills. We don’t need a mediation with him,” he said.Pleas for peace At a news conference, Meloni condemned Russia’s “brutal and unjust aggression”, pledged Italy’s support for Ukraine for “as long as is necessary” and urged Russia to immediately withdraw.
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