Volodymyr Zelensky thanked Pope Leo XIV after meeting with the US Pontiff for a private meeting.
The Ukrainian President and his wife Olena Zelenska met with Leo, 69, after the Vatican granted him an audience following the Pope's inaugural mass at St Peter's Square.
'We thank the Vatican for its willingness to become a platform for direct negotiations between Ukraine and Russia,' Zelensky said after meeting the pontiff.
Leo this week offered the Vatican as a venue for peace talks between Ukraine and Russia to help solve the 'very difficult, dramatic situation'.
It comes after Leo shook hands with JD Vance following his inauguration mass just weeks after his criticism of the US Vice President resurfaced.
