The Kremlin said on Thursday no “concrete agreements” between Russia and the Vatican on “peace in Ukraine” after the talks started on Wednesday between the advisor of the Russian presidency and the envoy of Pope Francis.
In the contacts “opinions and information on humanitarian issues in the context of Ukrainian affairs were exchanged, but no concrete decisions or agreements were reached,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Thursday.
Italian Cardinal Matteo Zuppi, a Vatican envoy, met with Yuri Ushakov, adviser to the Russian presidency on foreign affairs, on Wednesday and will meet with the Patriarch of the Russian Orthodox Church, Cyril, on Thursday.
Cardinal Zuppi’s visit to Moscow comes three weeks after his trip to Kiev, where he met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
The Ukrainian head of state then told Pope Francis’ envoy that Kiev will only accept an agreement providing for Russia’s withdrawal from Ukrainian territories.
The prospects for mediation are slim at the moment, as Russia on the one hand accuses Kiev of rejecting negotiations, and on the other hand Zelensky reiterates that Moscow must withdraw from all Ukrainian territories, including the Crimean peninsula occupied by Russian troops since 2014.
Russian Foreign Minister Serguei Lavrov said recently that Russia is maintaining the objectives of the “special military operation” on Ukrainian territory, Russia’s official designation regarding the invasion of Ukraine.
Source: DN
