Pope Leo and Zelensky discuss aid and evacuation for occupied Oleshky
The Vatican said the pope urged cooperation to deliver food and medicine and allow civilians to leave safely. Ukraine and Russia were discussing a local ceasefire, but no final evacuation deal had been announced.
Pope Leo XIV spoke by phone with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on October 19 about aid and civilian evacuation from Russian-occupied Oleshky, a town in Ukraine’s Kherson region. The Vatican said the pope hoped cooperation between Ukraine and Russia would allow food and medical supplies in and civilians out safely. No final evacuation agreement had been publicly announced.
The Vatican called for any evacuation to be voluntary and safe, according to Reuters. Zelensky said the two discussed the humanitarian emergency in Oleshky and the pope’s diplomatic contacts with Russia, The Kyiv Independent reported. ‘We are working to help our people there and are preparing solutions,’ Zelensky said, according to the outlet.
Ceasefire talks and the proposed evacuation route
The October 19 conversation followed Pope Leo’s October 16 call with Russian President Vladimir Putin, during which he asked for a ceasefire to let aid enter Oleshky. Reuters reported that the Kremlin said Putin had agreed to cooperate with the pope on organising supplies, but its account did not mention a ceasefire.
Ukraine and Russia were discussing a local ceasefire and nearing an evacuation agreement, Ukrainian Human Rights Ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets said on October 18, according to The Kyiv Independent. The proposal would take residents directly to Ukrainian-controlled territory instead of routing them through Russian-occupied areas, Russia and Belarus. It remained unclear when an evacuation could begin or whether the pope’s intervention had affected those negotiations.
Why Oleshky residents need humanitarian access
About 2,000 people remained in Oleshky without sufficient food or medicine, The Kyiv Independent reported. The town has been under Russian occupation since the early days of the full-scale invasion. Residents also faced shortages of water and electricity; mined roads, drone attacks and interrogations at checkpoints made leaving dangerous.
The Kyiv Independent reported that Russian forces had prevented Ukraine and international humanitarian organisations from reaching occupied areas with aid. The crisis was the focus of Pope Leo’s earlier appeal to Putin, covered in NewsJaws’ report on his call for aid and civilian evacuations in Oleshky.
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Sources and context
- Pope Leo, Zelensky discuss hopes for ceasefire in Russian-occupied OleshkyThe Kyiv Independent; reporting by Abbey Fenbert
- Pope Leo urges Zelensky to cooperate with Russia on aid for OleshkyReuters, carried by The Straits Times
AI-assisted article checked against the listed sources. NewsJaws did not conduct interviews or attend the reported events.