RELIGIONS NEWS AGENCY (REDNA) – Ukraine’s prime minister asked Pope Francis to help facilitate the return of Ukrainian children who were forcibly taken to Russia.
According to AP Ukrainian prime minister met privately Pope at Vatican on Thursday.
Denys Shmyhal, briefing reporters on his half-hour audience with the pontiff, said he also invited Francis to come to Ukraine.
“I asked His Holiness to help us return home Ukrainians, Ukrainian children who are detained, arrested, and criminally deported to Russia,″ Shmyhal said.
Francis has repeatedly decried the war in Ukraine, which began 14 months ago with Russia’s invasion of its neighbor.
He has expressed a desire to visit both Ukraine and Russia in the context of his hopes of improving the prospects for peace.
The International Criminal Court last month issued an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin and Russia’s children’s commissioner, accusing them of war crimes for abducting children from Ukraine.
Russia has denied any wrongdoing, contending the children were moved for their safety.