Pope meets Ukrainian Prime Minister

Vatican News

Pope Francis on Thursday received Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal of Ukraine in a private audience in the Vatican, the Holy See's Press Office said in a brief note.  Later, Shmyhal also held talks with Vatican Secretary of State, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, who was accompanied by Vatican Secretary for Relations with States, Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher.

At the beginning of the cordial discussions at the Secretariat of State, the Press Office noted, both sides focused on the good relations between the Holy See and Ukraine, with particular attention to some current matters of mutual interest, as well as various themes relating to the life and activity of the Catholic Church in the country.   Then they discussed extensively the health crisis and the dramatic situation in eastern Ukraine, with the hope that the recent ceasefire violations would give way to gestures promoting a peaceful resolution to the conflict.