The Holy See’s top diplomat said the failure of this week’s Russia-Ukraine meeting in Istanbul was “tragic.”

The Holy See’s top diplomat spoke to reporters on the fringes of a Vatican event in Rome, May 16, 2025.

The new pope wants to host Ukraine peace talks after a summit in Istanbul failed to bring together the main players in the conflict.

Following Russian President Vladimir Putin’s no-show at peace talks in Turkey that he himself suggested, the Vatican called the outcome “tragic” and said Pope Leo XIV wants to make the Holy See available to host the two sides in an effort to end the war, which has been raging for more than three years.

“This is all tragic because we hoped that it would be a, maybe slow, process, but with a peaceful solution to the conflict, and instead we are back at the beginning,” Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Holy See’s top diplomat, told reporters on the fringes of a Vatican event in Rome on Friday. “Now we will see what to do, but the situation is difficult.”

“The pope plans to make the Vatican, the Holy See, available for a direct meeting between the two sides,” said Parolin, Pope Leo’s No. 2, according to news agency Ansa.

Leo XIV, who was elected last week, has made it clear that working for peace in Ukraine will be a major priority of his pontificate. He spoke to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy by phone on Sunday, and referred to “the suffering of the beloved Ukrainian people” in his first Sunday blessing in St. Peter’s Square.

At an audience with Eastern Church representatives on Wednesday, Leo appealed to the two leaders “with all his heart” to negotiate. “The Holy See is always ready to help bring enemies together face to face … Let us meet, let us talk, let us negotiate,” adding: “Those who make history are the peacemakers,” the pontiff said.

On Thursday, in his first post as pope on X, Leo called for peace saying: “I would like this greeting of peace to resound in your hearts, in your families, and among all people, wherever they may be, in every nation and throughout the world.”

His predecessor Pope Francis sent an envoy to Ukraine and Russia, and worked to facilitate the reunification of Ukrainian children with their families and the exchange of prisoners-of-war. Francis defended Ukraine, although earlier in the conflict he had attributed blame to NATO expansion.

Parolin also said that the Vatican was working on a possible meeting with U.S. Vice President JD Vance at Sunday’s papal inauguration. Before Leo was elected pope, a social media account under the pope’s name repeatedly criticized the Trump administration — and Vance in particular — over strict U.S. immigration policies.

Asked about a potential meeting between Leo and Vance, Parolin said: “I don’t know, the problem is that there are so many delegations; there is very little time and so they will see each other if there is time. Protocol is working on it.”