At Pope Leo XIV’s behest, Cardinal Matteo Maria Zuppi of Bologna, Italy, traveled to Ukraine and gave holy cards to Russian prisoners of war near Lviv.
Cardinal Zuppi, accompanied by the apostolic nuncio and the Ukrainian ambassador to the Holy See, also gave the prisoners keychains, telling them that he hoped that “soon you will put your house key on it, so you can open your front door and embrace your loved ones.”
“Pope Leo sent the nuncio and me here to bring you hope,” added Cardinal Zuppi. “He is praying for you, that the war may end and that you may return home.”
Cardinal Zuppi also visited Ukraine in 2023 at the behest of Pope Francis as the Pope’s special wartime envoy.