Pope Francis Considers Welcoming President Zelensky's Invitation To Kyiv

Photo by Gleb Albovsky on Unsplash

JAKARTA - If this happened, maybe Pope Francis would make history. One of the great figures of the planet who came to Ukraine since the Russian invasion began.

Pope Francis said he was considering visiting the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv.

The head of the Catholic Church was invited by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and the Mayor of Kyiv, Vitali Klitschko, along with Ukrainian religious leaders on March 8.

The Vatican has confirmed that they have received the letter. And on the one hand, the Pope prayed for Ukraine but did not mention any travel plans.

But asked by a reporter on the plane taking him from Rome to Malta if he was considering the invitation, Francis said, "Yeah, it's on the table".

The invitation from Ukrainian political leaders has been supported by the main archbishop Sviatoslav Shevchuk of the Byzantine Rite Catholic church of Ukraine and the Ukrainian ambassador to the Vatican, Andriy Yurash.

Francis has previously described Vladimir Putin's war as unjustified aggression and denounced the atrocities.

Pope Francis, visited Malta on Saturday for a two-day trip in a bid to draw attention to the migration crisis exacerbated by the war in Ukraine.

After landing, for the first time he used the elevator to get off the ITA plane to the runway. He also sat in his car during the tour in Valletta. Francis had been suffering from painful knee inflammation for months.