(AmericanProsperity.com) – According to July 24 Russian media reports, Pope Francis offered to meet with Russia’s Patriarch Kirill in capital Moscow. The head of the Catholic Church allegedly proposed this meeting during his scheduled visit to Mongolia in August. The reunion between the two religious leaders would take place after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine strained their relationship.
As reported by the state-run news agency Tass, the head of the World Union of Old Believers Leonid Sevastianov was the one who revealed Pope Francis’ alleged proposal. Sevastianov told the news agency that the head of the Catholic Church offered to meet Kirill during a flight’s refueling he will have at one of the most important airports in Moscow.
Sevastianov added that this meeting would take place in a “neutral area” to prevent any “type of inconvenience” or a provocation of those who oppose Pope Francis’ visit to Russia. However, he told the news agency that the leader of the Russian Orthodox Church hasn’t yet responded to the Pope’s proposal.
According to a Newsweek report, the American magazine asked the Vatican for comments on this matter. A spokesperson for the Holy See told the media outlet that a meeting between the two religious leaders was already planned for 2022 in Jerusalem. The spokesperson added that a place and time for a new meeting is yet to be determined.
The news about this possible meeting takes place after Cardinal Matteo Maria Zuppi visited Russia in June for peace talks. This was the first time that a prominent member of the Vatican met with Kremlin officials after the war in Ukraine started back in 2022.
About this visit, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said during a press conference that Russian President Putin valued this gesture from the Vatican. He added that the Russian leader believed this represented a valuable effort and initiative in looking for “a peaceful solution” to what he referred to as the “Ukrainian crisis.”
Copyright 2023, AmericanProsperity.com
