Russian Foreign Minister Serghei Lavrov judged a meeting between Russian and Ukrainian delegations “unrealistic” in the Vatican. Tass reports it.
“It is not elegant that Orthodox countries discuss in a Catholic headquarters of the issues relating to the elimination of the fundamental causes” of the conflict, Lavrov said, adding that among these “fundamental causes” there is what he called “the path of destruction of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church” by the Kiev authorities. “I think it would not be easy for the Vatican himself to receive delegations from two Orthodox countries in these conditions,” concluded the head of Russian diplomacy.
The Kremlin said that “there is not yet a decision or an agreement on the next negotiation platform” for the interviews between Russia and Ukraine and that “this decision cannot be taken by a single party” but “requires the consent of both”. This was reported by the Russian press agency Interfax, according to which Dmitri Peskov thus answered a question about the possible negotiations in the Vatican and on the possible existence of an agreement of principle for new interviews in Istanbul.
The European bishops, after a meeting with Leone XIV, regarding a possible mediation of the Vatican stressed that “we did not enter the details of the concrete proposals, but we really focused on the importance of working for a peace that is a right peace, this balance between peace and justice seems a very important thing in his thought”.
The Vatican Secretary of State, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, explained to Repubblica that there are no peace negotiations between Russia and Ukraine to be kept in the Vatican. The offer of the Holy See as a place of negotiating is still valid, but no signs of opening have arrived on a possible meeting in June: “The Holy Father expressed willingness to facilitate dialogue between the parties, but I have not received feedback in this sense”.
Meanwhile, Russian attacks on Ukraine continue. Kiev says that the Russian Armed Forces launched 658 Air attacks yesterday out of 17 settlements in the Ukrainian region of Zaporizhzia. Damage to houses, vehicles and a school are recorded.
The General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces writes on Facebook that Russian losses in the last 24 hours have been 1,050. According to the same source, the total losses of the Russians in the war against Ukraine have reached around 978,700.
Moscow in turn reports that Ukrainian forces launched 92 drones last night in Russian territory, causing at least eight injured. According to the Ministry of Defense, 24 of the pilot -free aircraft were intercepted on the Moscow region, after 22 of yesterday’s day.
In the last few days, due to the intensification of the Ukrainian attacks, the four international airports of the Russian capital have been closed to the traffic, with hundreds of flights that have undergone delays. In the Lipetsk region, the wreckage of a drone intercepted by the anti -aircraft defenses fell on an industrial area in the Yelets area causing a fire and the wounding of eight people, according to reports from the governor, cited by the Tass agency.