Russian Patriarch Cyril I will meet Thursday in Moscow with Pope Francis’ envoy for peace in Ukraine, Italian Cardinal Matteo Zuppi, Russian Orthodox Church sources said.
The meeting will take place this Thursday afternoon, according to the Russian news agencies TASS and RIA Novosti.
On Wednesday, Matteo Zuppi met with the adviser to the Russian Presidency for International Affairs, Yuri Ushakov.
So far, the Kremlin has not disclosed the content of the talks, but the president of the Russian Catholic Bishops’ Conference, Archbishop Pavel Pezzi, said the two addressed refugee-related issues.
“The cardinal’s meeting with Yuri Ushakov took place in a good and positive atmosphere. The main topic discussed was the humanitarian problem related to refugees, including minors,” Pavel Pezzi told the TASS news agency.
There is no information provided by the Vatican and the Russian authorities if there will be more meetings between Matteo Zuppi and other Russian officials.
This trip to Russia comes three weeks after Cardinal Pavel Zuppi’s visit to kyiv, where he met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky
In kyiv, the papal envoy held several meetings and heard the president reaffirm that he will not accept any cessation of hostilities that does not include Russia’s withdrawal from Ukrainian territory.
In response, Moscow said that the kyiv authorities had to adapt to the new reality.
Ukraine and Russia still engaged in talks in the first months of the war, but without success.
So far, all initiatives for the two sides to resume dialogue have failed.
Source: TSF
