President of the Conference of Catholic Bishops of Russia Archbishop Pavel (Paolo) Pezzi commented today on talks between Papal peace envoy Cardinal Matteo Zuppi and Russian Presidential aide Yury Ushakov. “The cardinal’s meeting with Ushakov was held in a good, positive atmosphere. The key topic was the humanitarian problem linked with refugees, including minors,” he told TASS, giving no further details.
“We can confirm this information,” he said, when asked to comment on Apostolic Nuncio to Russia Archbishop Giovanni d’Aniello’s remark that a meeting between Patriarch Kirill and Cardinal Zuppi would take place over June 28-29. In early June, Cardinal Zuppi visited Kyiv, where he met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and religious leaders.
Zuppi arrived in Moscow on June 27 and began the second stage of his mission. Zuppi met on June 29 with the Russian Commissioner for Children’s Rights Maria Lvova-Belova, ignoring the arrest warrant against her by the International Criminal Court in The Hague, alleging the “illegal deportation” of children from Ukraine. Unlike the ICC, which has been entirely politicized, Zuppi is on a mission of mercy on behalf of the Pope.
