President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky had his first phone conversation with newly elected Pope Leo XIV and invited him to Ukraine.
This was reported by LB.ua.
“It was our first conversation, but it was very amiable and substantive. I thanked him for supporting Ukraine and our people. We greatly appreciate His Holiness's statements about the need to achieve a just and lasting peace for our country and the release of prisoners,” the President of Ukraine wrote on Telegram.
He noted that he had spoken with the Pope about the thousands of Ukrainian children deported by Russia and that Ukraine is counting on the Vatican's assistance in bringing them home.
“I informed him of the agreement between Ukraine and our partners that a full, unconditional ceasefire for at least 30 days should begin today (May 12). I confirmed our readiness for further negotiations in any format, including direct talks, which we have repeatedly emphasized. Ukraine wants to end this war and is doing everything possible to achieve that. We expect reciprocal steps from Russia,” Zelensky stated, adding that he had invited His Holiness to make an apostolic visit to Ukraine, noting that this visit “would bring real hope to all believers and to our people.”
“We agreed to keep in touch and plan a personal meeting in the near future,” the president concluded.
The newly elected Pope Leo XIV accused Russia of aggression against Ukraine, which he described as accompanied by crimes against humanity, and called on Russia to lay down its arms.
In his first Sunday address, he also called for peace in Ukraine.
The new pope was elected in the fourth round of voting by the conclave. It was a 69-year-old American, Robert Prevost, who chose the name Leo XIV.