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 of military prisoners, civilian exchanges, the search for missing persons, and family reunification and children displaced by the war.
The two men also spoke about the emerging humanitarian crisis in the Russian-occupied city of Oleshky in Ukraine’s Kherson region, where residents are reportedly facing severe shortages of food and medicine. The discussion touched on the possibility of opening a humanitarian corridor.
Russia’s Foreign Ministry said in a Sept. 30 statement: “The discussions, held against the backdrop of the conflict in and around Ukraine and the emerging prospects for its resolution, addressed cooperation between Russia and the Holy See on humanitarian matters — including the search for missing persons, the exchange of prisoners of war and civilians, family reunification, and the so-called ‘children’s dossier.’”
Expressing the Russian government’s perspective on Oleshky, the Foreign Ministry said: “A significant item on the agenda was the humanitarian crisis in the city of Alyoshki [Oleshky], Kherson Region. Cardinal Zuppi received a detailed briefing on the criminal actions of the Kiev regime, which has effectively taken the city’s civilian population hostage and is obstructing all attempts to deliver food and medicine or to evacuate the civilians remaining in the city.”
It added: “At the Vatican’s request, a visit was arranged for Cardinal Zuppi to one of the places of detention of Ukrainian military personnel arrested for putting up resistance to the special military operation. During this visit, the special envoy was able to speak personally with the Ukrainian detainees and to verify Russia’s strict adherence to all relevant humanitarian standards.”
“Cardinal Zuppi’s visit confirmed the constructive and regular nature of the dialogue between Russia and the Holy See, as well as the commitment of both sides to continuing cooperation in the humanitarian sphere.”
Human rights ombudswoman Yana Lantratova gave an account of her meeting with Zuppi in a Sept. 29 post on her Telegram channel.
She wrote: “The main topic of our meeting was the return of Russian servicemen from Ukrainian captivity. I spoke about how prisoner exchanges are being carried out today and about how direct dialogue with the Ukrainian ombudsman has been established on this and other issues.”
“We also separately discussed the return of civilians.”
“Cardinal Matteo Zuppi expressed his readiness to continue cooperation on humanitarian issues. Behind every such issue are real people who need our help. I thank the representative of the Holy See for his constructive approach.”
A Sept. 30 press release from the Office of the Presidential Commissioner for Children’s Rights said that Zuppi and children’s rights ombudswoman Maria Lvova-Belova “discussed issues concerning the protection of children and families, including the reunification of minors with their relatives.”
Lvova-Belova, who is subject to an International Criminal Court arrest warrant issued in 2023, said: “We are continuing our cooperation with Cardinal Matteo Zuppi and the Apostolic Nunciature in the Russian Federation on humanitarian issues involving children and families.”
She added: “Over the past four years, with our assistance, 32 children from 24 families have been reunited with their relatives in Russia, while another 145 children from 118 families have been reunited with their relatives in Ukraine and third countries. We are working on the basis of all the information submitted to us.”
The Office also said that Lvova-Belova spoke to the cardinal about children in Russian regions affected by the war and “cases involving minors in unlawful activities, including the recruitment of teenagers via the internet.”
“We discussed further cooperation in the interests of children and families. We are proceeding with this work consistently, within the framework of a bilateral group with the assistance of representatives of the Russian Foreign Ministry,” she said.
Zuppi’s trip to Moscow was preceded by an Aug. 24-28 trip to Russia by Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, the Vatican’s Secretary for Relations with States.
Both men visited Ukraine in July, with Zuppi traveling to the country on July 13-16 and Gallagher on July 16-21.
Pope Leo XIV called for dialogue to end the Ukraine war during his Sept. 28 inflight press conference following his visit to France.
He said that the Church was “continually inviting leaders — such as those from Russia and Ukraine, and from other countries — to come, to sit down, to engage in dialogue, and to seek ways to resolve problems without continuing these wars that no longer make sense.”