Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky visited the Vatican during his first trip to Italy since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022. He met with Pope Francis and talked about the plight of millions of Ukrainians affected by the invasion. He thanked the pope for his personal attention to the issue and also discussed the fate of tens of thousands of children that Kyiv says were deported to Russia. Zelensky said they need to do everything to bring them back to Ukraine.
During the meeting, Zelensky also talked about a Ukrainian peace plan that Kyiv has promoted for several months but which Moscow has dismissed repeatedly. He asked for Pope Francis’ support for the initiative.
Earlier, Zelensky met with Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and President Sergio Mattarella.
Saurabh Verma is a Senior Sub-editor who covers general, national, and international day-to-day news for news18.com. He keenly observes politics and loves to write about it.
