Zelenskyy meets Pope Francis at Vatican and seeks backing for Ukraine’s peace plan

ROME — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had private talks with Pope Francis at the Vatican on Saturday, later saying he sought support for Ukraine’s peace plan from the pontiff, who in the past offered to try to help end the full-scale war Russia launched a year ago.

Meanwhile, Germany will provide Ukraine with additional military aid worth more than $3 billion, including tanks, anti-aircraft systems and ammunition, its government said Saturday. The announcement came as preparations were underway in Berlin for Zelenskyy’s possible first visit to Germany since Russia invaded his country. The exact schedule was not publicly announced because of security concerns.

The new military aid package, first reported by German weekly Der Spiegel, includes 30 Leopard 1 A5 tanks, 20 Marder armored personnel carriers, more than 100 combat vehicles, 18 self-propelled Howitzers, 200 reconnaissance drones, four IRIS-T SLM anti-aircraft systems and other air defense equipment.

It comes after Ukrainian military commanders said their troops recaptured more territory from Russian forces near the eastern city of Bakhmut amid speculation about a possible counteroffensive by Kyiv.

Russian shelling on Saturday killed two civilians, including a 15-year-old girl, and wounded 10 more in Kostyantynivka, a city less 18 miles west of Bakhmut, the regional prosecutor’s office said.

Vatican News

This image made available by Vatican News shows Pope Francis meeting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy during a private audience at The Vatican, Saturday, May 13, 2023. Francis recently said that the Vatican has launched a behind-the-scenes initiative to try to end the war launched last year by Russia. (Vatican News via AP)

Zelenskyy held his hand over his heart and said it was a “great honor” to meet with the pope. Francis, using a cane for his knee problem, came to greet the Ukrainian president before ushering him into a papal studio near the Vatican’s audience hall.

In a tweet after the 40-minute audience, Zelenskyy expressed gratitude to Francis for “his personal attention to the tragedy of millions of Ukrainians.” He said he spoke with the pontiff “about the tens of thousands of deported (Ukrainian) children. We must make every effort to return them home.”

Last month, Ukraine’s prime minister, Denys Shmyhal, asked the pope to help get children returned from Russia to Ukraine. The Vatican’s statement Saturday made no mention of the request.

Instead, the Vatican said the two men spoke of Ukraine’s “humanitarian and political situation provoked by the ongoing war.”

“The pope assured his constant prayer, paid witness to by his many public appeals and by his continued invoking of the Lord for peace, since February of last year,” the Vatican said, a reference to the Russian invasion that began Feb. 24, 2022.

Gregorio Borgia, Associated Press

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy leaves Saturday after meeting with Pope Francis at The Vatican.

The meeting came as Russia’s defense ministry said Storm Shadow long-range cruise missiles delivered to Ukraine by the United Kingdom this week damaged unspecified civilian enterprises in Luhansk province in Ukraine’s far east. Luhansk authorities separately said another missile strike hit the regional capital, wounding an elderly woman.

Two Russian Mi-8 helicopters and an Su-34 fighter-bomber crashed Saturday in the Bryansk region bordering Ukraine, state news agency Tass and a Telegram channel close to the Russian defense ministry reported; the newspaper Kommersant cited reports of two fighter planes crashing. The causes of the crashes were not immediately disclosed, but concern in Bryansk is growing about cross-border attacks from Ukraine.

Some Ukrainian units continue to push forward near Bakhmut, the commander of Ukraine’s land forces said Saturday, just a day after Ukrainian commanders said their troops recaptured territory at the scene of the war’s longest and bloodiest battle. “Our soldiers are moving forward in some sectors of the front, and the enemy is losing equipment and manpower,” Oleksandr Syrskyi said on Telegram.

Zelenskyy also said he asked the pope to condemn Russian “crimes in Ukraine” because “there can be no equality between the victim and the aggressor.”

“I also talked about our Peace Formula as the only effective algorithm for achieving a just peace,” Zelenskyy said. Later, in an interview on Italian state TV, the Ukrainian leader said the pope “knows my position. The war is in Ukraine, that is why it has to be Ukraine’s plan” to bring peace.

Zelenskyy’s 10-point plan would establish a special tribunal to prosecute Russian war crimes. It would also create a European-Atlantic security architecture with guarantees for Ukraine, restore Ukraine’s damaged power infrastructure and ensure safety around Europe’s largest nuclear power plant at Zaporizhzhia.

Alessandra Tarantino, Associated Press

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni shake hands Saturday before their meeting at Chigi Palace, Government's office, in Rome.

Earlier in the day, Italian officials pledged open-ended military and financial support to Zelenskyy as well as stronger backing for Ukraine’s cherished aim to join the European Union.

“The message is clear and simple,” Premier Giorgia Meloni said after a meeting with Zelenskyy that lasted more than an hour. “The future of Ukraine is a future of peace and freedom. And it’s the future of Europe, a future of peace and freedom, for which there are no other possible solutions.”

The premier, who staunchly supports military aid for Ukraine, said Italy would back the country “360 degrees for all the time necessary and beyond.”

Separately, Italian President Sergio Mattarella told Zelenskyy, “We are fully at your side,” Mattarella told Zelenskyy as he welcomed him. Later, presidential palace sources said Mattarella assured his guest that Italy would continue to support Ukraine militarily and financially, as well as with reconstruction and humanitarian aid.

Since the war began, Italy has contributed about $1.1 billion in military and financial aid, as well as humanitarian assistance.