Leo XIV is “a man of peace who wants peace,” said Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin. He was speaking to the press on the sidelines of a conference on Ukraine in Rome on May 14, 2025, less than a week after the election of the new Pope.
The Vatican's secretary of state, himself considered "papabile" in the recent conclave, says the new pope will continue to work for peace in Ukraine and Gaza.
The Vatican's “number two” assured reporters that the Holy See's commitment to the return of Ukrainian children taken to Russia was still “active.” He also said that the new Pope's first trip would be to Turkey, to mark the occasion of the 1,700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea.
Cardinal Parolin, who was considered papabile during the recent conclave, has been provisionally reappointed to his position as secretary of state by Leo XIV, along with all other officials of the Curia, at the beginning of the new pontificate.
Speaking at the Gregorian University, where he took part in a conference on Christian commitment to Ukraine, the Italian noted that reactions had been “very positive” following the election of Leo XIV.
The new Pope “presented himself in a very serene manner,” he said, referring to his first appearance in St. Peter's Loggia on the evening of May 8.
“He is a man of peace, who wants peace, and who will build peace through the bridges he spoke of in his first [greeting to the faithful],” he said.
The Holy See ready to offer “facilitation” in peace talks
The secretary of state said that the Holy See is “always available to offer a space” for dialogue. “Talking about mediation is a bit excessive, but at least [...] facilitation,” he added, specifying that the Vatican did not intend to “interfere” with ongoing initiatives.
In a speech to Eastern Catholics that morning, Leo XIV said that on the international stage, “the Holy See is always ready to help bring enemies together, face to face, to talk to one another.”
Asked about Cardinal Matteo Zuppi's mediation to repatriate Ukrainian children, which began in 2023, Cardinal Parolin said that the mechanism remained “active.”
This involves “exchanging names through the two nunciatures [in Ukraine and Russia], followed by verification,” he added, without commenting on the “controversial” statistics of children taken to Russia. “The important thing is that they all return to their families one after the other,” he said.
“Premature” to consider a trip to Ukraine
Responding to President Volodymyr Zelensky's invitation to Pope Francis to visit Ukraine during their telephone conversation on Monday, Cardinal Parolin said it was “premature” to discuss the matter and that the trip still had to be evaluated by the pontiff.
The new Pope's first trip “will be to Nicaea,” he said. “It’s an important moment for the Catholic Church, for ecumenism, and it was planned that the pope would go there” before Francis' death, he said, assuming that Leo XIV would carry out this plan.
Cardinal Parolin also said that the Middle East had been given special attention during the general congregations in preparation for the conclave. On the subject of the Holy Land, he said that the cardinals wanted “continuity” with Francis' positions “to obtain the release of hostages — one of the points that the Holy See always raises” — and for humanitarian assistance in Gaza.
