Zelensky meets with the Pope, Prime Minister and President of Italy
He asked the Pope to condemn russian crimes in Ukraine, "because there can be no equality between the victim and the aggressor"
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky met with Pope Francis in the Vatican, and before that he held a meeting and press conference with Italian Prime Minister Georgіа Meloni and President Sergio Mattarella.
It is reported that the meeting with the Pope lasted about 40 minutes, and the President communicated with the Pontiff with the help of interpreters.
It is also known that the Pope presented the head of the Ukrainian state with an olive branch as a symbol of peace, and Zelensky, for his part, presented the Vatican head with a portrait of the Madonna of the Mother of God painted on the remains of a bulletproof vest.
"I met with Pope Francis. I am grateful for his personal attention to the tragedy of millions of Ukrainians. He also emphasized the tens of thousands of deported children. We must make every effort to return them home," Zelensky wrote on his official Telegram channel.
He emphasized that he had asked the Pope to condemn russian crimes in Ukraine, "because there can be no equality between the victim and the aggressor," he said.
Zelensky also invited the pontiff to join the implementation of the Ukrainian peace formula.
This is Volodymyr Zelensky's first visit to Italy since the beginning of the russian invasion of Ukraine and his first meeting with the Pope during the war.
In 2020, Zelensky met with the Pope at the Vatican, and after the russian invasion in 2022, the pontiff and the Ukrainian president had several phone conversations.
Earlier, Pope Francis said that the Vatican was involved in a "secret" mission to establish peace in Ukraine. Ukrainian officials said they knew nothing about this mission.
During a joint press conference with Volodymyr Zelensky, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni emphasized that Italy supports Ukraine's accession to the EU and closer cooperation with NATO.
"You cannot achieve peace if you surrender," Meloni said, addressing the Ukrainian president. In her opinion, this would be a serious negative precedent for the whole world.
After the talks with Zelensky, Mеlonі promised to provide Kyiv with full support for EU membership, including assistance in the area of reforms.
"Ukraine is currently fighting to protect European values. These are the values of all our citizens. That is why we have decided to take an active position in supporting Ukraine's candidate status for EU membership. We will continue to provide our full support to facilitate Ukraine's gradual integration into the EU," she said.
At the same time, the Italian Prime Minister noted that Ukraine should implement reforms on its way to the EU.
"And we are ready to provide assistance as part of the reforms," Meloni said.
She assured that Rome would continue to work with its allies to provide military support to Ukraine.
The Italian prime minister also assured that her country is ready to provide all possible assistance when Ukraine deems it necessary to start peace talks with russia. "We support President Zelensky's 10-point peace formula," Meloni added.
During his meeting with Italian President Sergio Mattarella, Zelensky expressed gratitude for the consistent position in support of Ukraine.
"We appreciate the important military assistance that gives our country the ability to withstand russian aggression. The key to our success on the battlefield is the timely receipt of the necessary assistance. Italy was and is on the right side, on the side of truth in this war. We are moving towards victory. Victory is peace for our country," Zelensky wrote.
"In this war, Italy has been and remains on the right side, on the side of truth. We are moving towards victory. Because victory is peace for our country. I am confident that the Italian society fully shares our attitude, our just struggle against the unprovoked war of russia," the President said.
The two leaders discussed Ukraine's efforts to restore peace based on the Ukrainian peace formula.
Background. As reported, the Italian government intends to withdraw from the Chinese mega-project "One Belt, One Road".
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