Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has asked Pope Leo XIV to formalize the role of Cardinal Matteo Zuppi, who was named by Pope Francis as a special envoy to facilitate negotiations for the release of hostages in the Russia-Ukraine war.
Zelenskyy, who will meet with Pope Leo on Friday, wants the Vatican to act as official intermediary in hostage-release talks.
made the request in a letter to Pope Leo XIV ahead of an audience Friday between the pope and a delegation of returned Ukrainian children and civilians. At a briefing Wednesday, the young people described being subject to Russian propaganda and their trauma at being separated from loved ones.
Zelenskyy’s letter asked that Leo formalize the informal arrangement launched by Pope Francis in which an Italian cardinal, Matteo Zuppi, had served as a personal papal envoy for humanitarian issues.