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Ukraine Tells Vatican War Should End Soon

By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent Worthy News

VATICAN CITY/KYIV (Worthy News) -Faced with mounting losses at the frontlines, Ukraine’s embattled president told the Vatican on Tuesday that he understands the need to end the war against Russia “as soon as possible.”

Volodymyr Zelenskyy spoke at a meeting with Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin, who has been involved in papal peace efforts.

Since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, hundreds of thousands of soldiers as well as civilians are believed to have been killed in Europe’s bloodiest conflict since World War Two.

“I think we all understand that we must end the war as soon as possible, of course,” Zelenskyy told Parolin during a recorded conversation seen by Worthy News.

Zelenskyy called Parolin’s visit to Kyiv a “strong signal from the Vatican” about its concern about the war, adding on social media peace was a central theme at the meeting with Parolin.

The talks came less than two weeks after Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán visited Ukraine as part of a self-declared “peace mission” as Hungary took over the rotating European Union presidency on July 1. Orbán later met Russia’s and China’s leaders, Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping.

However, in response, several EU leaders and member states said they would boycott meetings hosted by Hungary during its half-year presidency. Informal interior and justice ministerial conferences occurred on Monday and Tuesday, though several countries sent lower-level officials.

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Critics said Orbán, a close ally of former U.S. President Donald J. Trump, had no EU mandate to negotiate peace. Yet with Trump leading in the polls and Orbán a close ally, critics say, fewer weapons may be delivered to Ukraine, forcing it into a peace deal under Russian conditions.

Other officials were also involved in peace gatherings, but Russia did not participate in the June 15-16 conference on Ukraine in Switzerland.

Representatives from 92 nations and eight international organizations attended the conference in Switzerland. It ended with the adoption of the final statement, which was not signed by some countries, including Brazil, India, South Africa, and Saudi Arabia.

The communique covered Ukraine’s grain export, the safety of nuclear power stations, and the return of war prisoners.

A day before the summit, Russian President Putin moved forward with his own peace initiative, calling on Ukraine to recognize Russia’s territorial claims made during the “special military operation” that started in February 2022.

While officially opposing the plan, Zelenskyy discussed peace plans with Pope Francis, Worthy News learned.

The last occasion was in June 2024, on the sidelines of the Group of Seven meeting in southern Italy, after they spoke by phone on December 28, 2023, about a “just peace for all of us” and the Vatican’s “appreciation” for the Zelenskyy peace plan.

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Pope Francis had previously received Zelenskyy at the Vatican on May 13, their first in-person meeting since Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022. They met earlier in 2020.

Two days after the war broke out on February 26, 2022, Zelenskyy said the “Ukrainian people felt the spiritual support of the pope,” who had expressed his sorrow.

Another phone conversation occurred on March 22, 2022, when Zelenskyy said he had briefed Pope Francis on “the difficult humanitarian situation and the blocking of humanitarian corridors by Russian forces.”

He welcomed “the Holy See’s mediation role in ending human suffering.”

Another call occurred on August 12, 2022, when Zelenskyy said the conversation focused on “the horrors experienced by the population” due to the Russian invasion, Worthy News learned.

Zelenskyy said he is encouraged by prayers and hopes the Catholic leader will visit wartorn Ukraine.