Russia does not see Vatican as a serious arena for peace talks, sources sayPope Leo XIV waves to the faithful from the balcony of the Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore (Basilica of Saint Mary Major) where Pope Francis is buried, in Rome, Italy, May 25, 2025. Simone Risoluti/Vatican Media/Handout via REUTERSRussia does not see the Vatican as a serious venue for peace talks with Ukraine because the Holy See is the seat of Catholicism and is surrounded by Italy, a NATO and EU member, three senior Russian sources told Reuters. Putin's foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, on Friday said the idea of the Vatican as a potential arena for peace talks was "a bit inelegant" given that Russia and Ukraine were Eastern Orthodox countries. The Russian Orthodox Church is by far the biggest of the churches in the Eastern Orthodox communion, which split with Western Christianity in the Great Schism of 1054. Russian sources said they viewed Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Oman as potentially suitable venues for talks.
