Pope Leo: ‘My heart goes out’ to suffering Ukrainian people

By Christopher Wells

Pope Leo XIV on Sunday said he has been following, “with a heavy heart” the news of intensified attacks on Ukrainian cities and civilian infrastructure that have caused the deaths of innocent people.

Russia has increased strikes on Ukraine, including on civilian targets, throughout the summer. In recent weeks, more Russian air attacks have been hitting their targets as Ukraine is running critically low on Western supplied air defence systems such as the Patriot surface-to-air missile defence system.

In the past few days, dozens of people, mostly civilians, have been killed in Ukraine by Russian missile and drone attacks. Although Russia claims strikes are aimed at military targets, recent attacks have left apartment buildings, private homes, and public transit routes in major population centres in ruins.

‘My heart goes out to the suffering of the people’

In his remarks following the weekly Angelus, Pope Leo said, “My heart goes out to the suffering of the people, who have been living in distress and fear for years.”

He renewed once again his appeal “to end the violence and halt the destruction, and to open hearts to dialogue, and peace.”

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In particular, the Holy Father expressed his hope that “the efforts being made in recent days to resume negotiations will bear concrete fruit and pave the way for diplomacy.”

US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner travelled to Russia for talks on Saturday with Russian President Vladimir Putin, who launched the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 after years of low-level conflict. The two envoys are set to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv on Sunday.

Pope Leo concluded his remarks on Sunday by calling for prayers “that harmony may prevail in all the conflicts of the world.”

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