Vatican peace envoy Cardinal Matteo Zuppi visited Ukrainian prisoners of war during his Sept. 28-30 trip to Moscow.
The trip marked the Italian cardinal’s third mission to Moscow, following visits in June 2023 and October 2024, but the first in which he was able to meet with Ukrainian servicemen detained in Russia.
The visit followed Zuppi’s meeting in July with Russian soldiers held at a facility in Ukraine’s western Lviv region.
According to Avvenire, a newspaper owned by the Italian bishops’ conference, Zuppi visited the facility holding Ukrainian POWs Sept. 29.
Zuppi said later that he had “been able to speak personally with some of them to check on their conditions.”
The president of the Italian bishops’ conference added that “we found a great desire to embrace their loved ones again: I therefore hope that this visit can encourage the exchange of prisoners and lead to further developments.”
Zuppi’s three-day program in Moscow featured meetings with senior Russian officials, including presidential aide Yury Ushakov, human rights ombudswoman Yana Lantratova, and children’s rights ombudswoman Maria Lvova-Belova.
Avvenire reported that Zuppi and Ushakov discussed exchanges
Read more...
