On the second day of his mission to Russia as the Pope’s special envoy, Cardinal Matteo Juppi met with Archbishop Antonio of Volokolamsk and the Russian presidential commissioner for children’s rights, Maria Lvova-Belova, hoping to continue the work of repatriation of Ukrainian children.
Vatican News
“Humanitarian issues related to the conflict in Ukraine” were the central topic of the talks on Tuesday, October 15, between Cardinal Matteo Maria Juppi, the Pope’s special envoy to Russia, and Archbishop Antonio of Volokolamsk, head of the Department for Foreign Relations. Exterior of the Church of the Moscow Patriarchate.
The meeting occurred on the second day of Cardinal Juppi’s second mission to Russia, where he returned to “assist in the reunification of Ukrainian children with their families and in the exchange of prisoners to achieve the long-awaited peace.”
The cardinal met in the morning with the Russian president, the commissioner for children’s rights, Maria Lvova-Belova, and later met with Archbishop Antony with his delegation.
According to the official website of the Patriarchate, Cardinal Juppi’s delegation also included the apostolic nuncio to the Russian Federation, Monsignor Giovani Di Aniello, and the site also published several photographs of the meeting, in which the two men were facing each other. on a big table. They are seen sitting.
Greetings from Patriarch Kirill
Archbishop Anthony of Volokolamsk “greeted the guests on behalf of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and all Russians,” according to a statement from the Patriarchal Residence.
“During the talks, the parties also discussed humanitarian issues related to the conflict in Ukraine, as well as other matters of mutual interest,” the statement said. Cardinal Juppi and Patriarch Antonelli had already met during the cardinal’s first mission to Moscow on June 29, 2023, the second leg of his visit, which also took him to visit kyiv, Washington and Beijing.
The archbishop was part of the delegation that accompanied Patriarch Kirill to the meeting with the papal envoy. On that occasion the Patriarch said: “We appreciate that the Pope sent you to Moscow.”
Meeting with Commissioner Lvova-Belova
During his first mission to Russia, Cardinal Juppi met with Maria Lvova-Belova, the Russian presidential commissioner for children’s rights, appointed by President Putin.
The two met Tuesday in what the commissioner described as “constructive” talks in a statement posted on his Telegram channel.
He stressed that “cooperation with the Pope’s envoy and the apostolic embassy in the Russian Federation has been developing for more than a year.”
The main topic of negotiations between Cardinal Juppi and Lvova-Belova was the return of Ukrainian children forcibly taken to Russia.
According to the Ukrainian government, more than 19,000 minors are involved. A small group has already been reunited with their families, in part thanks to the mediation channels opened by the Holy See.
“We discussed the results and further dialogue in the interests of families and children, including the reunification of families from Russia and Ukraine,” the commissioner said in his post detailing the meeting with the cardinal. “We do this with the participation of the Russian Foreign Ministry. We have decided to continue working together.”
Meeting with Foreign Minister Lavrov
Earlier on Tuesday, upon arriving in Moscow, Cardinal Juppi held talks with Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on “cooperation in the humanitarian sector in the context of the conflict in Ukraine” and other international issues.
A statement issued by the ministry on the same day highlighted the “constructive development” of parallel talks between Russia and the Vatican.
