Pope says Vatican involved in secret Ukraine peace ‘mission’
- Pope Francis spoke of a mission ‘not yet public’ during his return journey from a three-day visit to Hungary
- The Catholic Church has repeatedly offered itself as a mediator since Russia attacked Ukraine in February 2022
The Vatican is involved in a peace mission to try to end the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, Pope Francis said, adding that it was also ready to help repatriate Ukrainian children taken to Russia or Russian-occupied land.
“There is a mission in course now but it is not yet public. When it is public, I will reveal it,” the pope told reporters on Sunday during a flight home after a three-day visit to Hungary.
“I think that peace is always made by opening channels. You can never achieve peace through closure. … This is not easy.”
The pope added that he had spoken about the situation in Ukraine with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban and with Metropolitan (bishop) Hilarion, a representative of the Russian Orthodox Church in Budapest.
“In these meetings we did not just talk about Little Red Riding Hood. We spoke of all these things. Everyone is interested in the road to peace,” he said.
Since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, Francis has pleaded for peace practically on a weekly basis, and has repeatedly expressed a wish to act as a broker between Kyiv and Moscow. His offer has so far failed to produce any breakthrough.
