Updated May 23, 2025 at 3:30 p.m.*
ROME — In Rome, as in Washington, and in other European capitals, the wait is unnerving. For the collective push to bring an end to the war in Ukraine, the ball is firmly back in the hands of Vladimir Putin. And the Kremlin leader is using time as a weapon.
It is not yet clear when the conditions for starting negotiations will end up on Volodymyr Zelensky’s table nor when an “arbitration platform” could be established, as envisioned by Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, to avoid unpredictable reactions from Donald Trump.
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But both at Meloni’s office and across the Tiber River in the Holy See, work on the Vatican hypothesis is in progress. Pope Leo XIV has offered to host peace talks between Russia and Ukraine. For that to happen, the feasibility of a visit by Putin to Rome is being considered, dusting off old agreements to create a diplomatic corridor: that is, a safe legal framework allowing Italy not to execute the standing arrest warrant of Putin as issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC).
An acceptable agreement bearing the “papal seal” ?
The Vatican option, however, raises some doubts among veteran diplomats. Some of them say Putin would be unlikely to accept an agreement that bears the “papal seal.” Two main reasons that Putin could balk: first, this would imply recognition of the West’s political role in the process; and secondly, it could overshadow the Russian Orthodox Church, which is central to his ideological vision of a Greater Russia.
Indeed on Friday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov cast doubts on the likelihood of peace talks at the Vatican for religious and historical reasons. “It would be a bit inelegant for Orthodox countries to use a Catholic platform to discuss issues on how to remove the root causes (of the conflict),” he said. “I think it would not be very comfortable for the Vatican itself to host delegations from two Orthodox countries in these circumstances.”
Still, both secular and religious leaders in Rome are forging ahead with efforts to bring the Russian and Ukrainian leaders to the Vatican for talks. It would, however, be a different approach than the White House has taken.
After the acceleration imposed by Trump’s announcements – to which Italy has had to adapt – there are calls for a more methodical approach. The hypothesis on the table is that of an initial meeting in Rome, with a humanitarian objective: obtaining a ceasefire, rather than immediately defining the geopolitical outlines of peace.
This “phase one” would involve Vatican Secretary of State Pietro Parolin and Cardinal Matteo Zuppi, who had already been assigned by former Pope Francis to help orchestrate the exchange of war prisoners and the repatriation of Ukrainian children from Russia.
The role of Zuppi, which La Stampa has confirmed was approved by Leo XIV, represents a strategic piece of Vatican diplomacy. “This confirmation,” explains historian Carlo Felice Casula, “allows low-intensity communication to continue, without formally committing the Holy See.”
Thorny planning
The idea is clear: to start an initial humanitarian phase in Rome, and then move the actual peace talks elsewhere, to a place seen as more neutral by Moscow. Istanbul is being considered, following the attempt already started by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, or Geneva, which has been pushed by French President Emmanuel Macron.
“The important challenge is to anticipate and limit the critical issues,” says an Italian government source. “But first of all, we need to know Putin’s conditions.”
And at the moment, the Kremlin does not appear very collaborative. Its chief spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Wednesday that Russia did not completely rule out the Vatican track, but specified that “no concrete proposal has arrived.”
After the recent conversation with Pope Leo XIV, Meloni is increasingly convinced that this is the right path.
A Vatican source brushed off Peskov’s statement: “It is not up to us to make invitations,” but it is rather up to the mediating leaders to cash in on Putin’s eventual green light.
And yet, after the recent conversation with Pope Leo XIV, Meloni is increasingly convinced that this is the right path. Several actors are moving on both sides of the Tiber: Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa and Don Aldo Buonaiuto of the John XXIII Community — who have long been involved in humanitarian bridges — are coordinating with Italian Undersecretary of State Alfredo Mantovano, who has already worked with Parolin for the Jubilee Holy Year planning. Parolin himself, speaking this week in New York, reiterated that “peace is built with patience and perseverance.”
Italian determination
Zuppi’s permanence in the role of papal envoy also represents an important signal. As president of the Italian Bishops Conference, he has good relations with Meloni’s Foreign Minister, Antonio Tajani. The idea of a dual track — first humanitarian, then political-diplomatic — is supported by the Italian government. “We will start with the return of children back home and support for civilians,” one diplomatic source said. “Then we can discuss other issues.”
A roadmap has begun circulating that indicates the beginning of June as a possible turning point for the first Vatican step.
Though still in the preparatory phase, a roadmap has begun circulating that indicates the beginning of June as a possible turning point for the first Vatican step. An acceleration that Meloni would like to give even greater weight in view of the summit for the reconstruction of Ukraine scheduled in Rome at the beginning of July.
Being able to present a basic agreement on that occasion would offer the Italian leader an unprecedented showcase. The ambition is to bring all Western leaders to the capital.The prime minister’s determination is quite high. Even just to be able to say that she has worked to “keep the West united” would be sweet revenge on Emmanuel Macron who tried to orchestrate peace with the Coalition of the Willing that was led by France and the UK.
*Originally published May 22, 2025, this article was updated May 23, 2025 with updated comments from Sergey Lavrov.
