Vatican silent on Russia-Ukraine talks, leaving prospects uncertain

VATICAN CITY, May 23 ------ Pope Leo XIV may have offered to host Russia-Ukraine peace talks at the Vatican, but neither the Pope nor senior Vatican officials have spoken publicly about the possibility, leaving prospects for such talks uncertain. The Vatican has made no public statement on the issue since US President Donald Trump first suggested the idea of Vatican-hosted talks to end the three-year conflict after a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin. 

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said on Tuesday, May 20, that Leo had confirmed his willingness to host talks during a phone call that day, but the Vatican press office declined to comment on the call or give information about what the Pope had said. 

Massimo Faggioli, an Italian academic who follows the Vatican closely, suggested the Vatican is wary of allowing a time of transition from one pope to the next of becoming politicized. “It’s interesting to note that with a papal transition still in progress… different heads of government, Italy included, are trying to pressure the Vatican to become involved in peace talks that have gone nowhere in the last three years,” said Faggioli, a professor at Villanova University in Pennsylvania. 

Vatican officials were reticent to offer any insight into how they were considering possible Russia-Ukraine negotiations. One official, speaking anonymously without authorization, said the Vatican has a general policy of being open to hosting negotiations to end any global conflict, but is careful about seeming too eager to step forward, so as not to be considered biased toward one of the belligerents. 

Source: rappler.com