Donald Trump’s proposal to use the Vatican as a neutral venue for peace talks between Russia and Ukraine has met with a cold response from the Kremlin. Despite the U.S. president’s announcement that the newly elected Pope Leo XIV expressed interest in the idea, Moscow is in no hurry to accept the invitation.
According to Bloomberg, citing sources familiar with the matter, Russian officials currently have no plans for President Vladimir Putin to visit the Vatican or any other country for negotiations. Instead, the Kremlin is focused on technical-level discussions that began recently in Istanbul and are expected to continue there.
“There are no agreements to hold negotiations in the Vatican,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed on Thursday. Nevertheless, European diplomats say conversations are ongoing about a possible role for the Vatican as host or mediator in future peace talks. According to insiders, a new round could happen as early as next week — if Russia agrees to participate.
U.S. officials, for their part, are closely coordinating with Ukraine to ensure the talks proceed. They are also signaling to Moscow that they would prefer to avoid the participation of hardliners like Putin’s aide Vladimir Medinsky, who led the Russian delegation during the previous Istanbul talks.
