Cardinal Matteo Zuppi, whom the Pope has entrusted with a peacekeeping mission in Ukraine, will visit Kyiv on June 5-6, the Holy See press office said.
“Referring to previous communications from the Holy See, we report that Cardinal Matteo Maria Zuppi, Archbishop of Bologna and president of the Italian Bishops’ Conference, will visit Kiev on June 5-6, 2023, as an envoy of His Holiness Pope Francis,” the statement said.
It is stressed that “the main goal of the initiative is to listen carefully to the Ukrainian authorities about possible ways to achieve a just peace and to support humane gestures that contribute to easing tensions.”
On May 13, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky met with Pope Francis at the Vatican.
Afterwards, the Vatican reported that “Pope Francis instructed Cardinal Matteo Zuppi, archbishop of Bologna and president of the Italian Bishops’ Conference, to lead a mission, agreed with the Secretariat of State, that would help ease tensions in the Ukrainian conflict.
