The Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskycondemned this Good Friday during a telephone conversation with the Leo XVI the Russian attack “with hundreds” of drones and “dozens of missiles” that the Russian Army was launching at that same moment against Ukraine.
For his part, Leo XIV reiterated to Zelensky his desire “that the cessation of hostilities and a just and lasting peace can be achieved as soon as possible,” according to the version provided by the Vatican.
The Ukrainian president also congratulated the pontiff on Easter and invited him to make his first apostolic visit to Ukraine.
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“At the same moment of our conversation, the Russians attacked Ukraine again. Hundreds of Shahed (drones) and dozens of missiles against our cities and communities,” Zelensky wrote in X after speaking with Leo XIV.
The Ukrainian president recalled that the wave of attacks he was referring to – which took place during the day – occurred after Russian forces also bombed Ukraine at night.
“In fact, the attack has been continuous, in several waves, since last night, and at least five regions have already been affected. Not a single hour of peace for our people, and this is Russia’s response to our proposal for an Easter ceasefire,” Zelensky said when reporting his conversation with the pope.
Meanwhile, the Vatican statement reported that the American pontiff stressed “his closeness to the Ukrainian people.”
The humanitarian situation was also addressed and “the urgency of guaranteeing the necessary aid to the population affected by the conflict” was reiterated and “reference has also been made to the efforts aimed at promoting initiatives of a humanitarian nature, especially with regard to the release of prisoners,” added the Holy See.
Pope Leo XIV presides over his first Holy Thursday Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica. (Photo: EFE)
/ FABIO FRUSTACI
Finally, the Vatican note adds, “the desire was renewed that, with the commitment and collaboration of the international community, a cessation of hostilities and a just and lasting peace could be reached as soon as possible.”
The Pope has received the Ukrainian president on two occasions, while he was at his residence in Castel Gandolfo, on the outskirts of Rome.
The Ukrainian president has publicly proposed repeatedly since last Monday a ceasefire on the occasion of the Orthodox Easter, which will be celebrated on April 12, which Russia has rejected. Zelensky conveyed this offer to the American mediators during his video conference conversation with them this week.
In his conversation with the Pope, Zelensky also thanked him for his help in the process to achieve the return to territory under kyiv control of Ukrainian minors from occupied areas who are now in Russian custody.
Leo XIV and Zelensky also spoke, according to the Ukrainian president, about the negotiation process between kyiv and Moscow promoted by the White House and the situation in the Middle East and the Persian Gulf in the context of the US and Israel war against Iran.
