(CNN) — The Vatican is part of a peace mission to end the war in Ukraine, Pope Francis said Sunday.
\”The mission is in the course now, but it is not yet public. When it is public, I will reveal it,\” Francis told reporters.
The pontiff made the remarks as he returned to Rome following a three-day trip to the Hungarian capital, Budapest.
During his visit, Francis met with a representative from the pro-Kremlin Russian Orthodox church, Metropolitan Hilarion, and separately with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán.
Asked if the meetings could accelerate peace, Francis said: \”I believe that peace is always made by opening channels; peace can never be made by closure.\”
Also asked if he was willing to help facilitate the return of Ukrainian children taken to Russia, the pope said: \”The Holy See is willing to act because it is right, it just is.\”
At a meeting with the pope last week, Ukraine’s Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal asked for his assistance with the children’s return.
Francis also heard testimony from refugees — many from Ukraine and appealed to the importance of charity during his Budapest visit.
On Sunday, the pontiff also told reporters that he was feeling better after being hospitalized in late March with a respiratory infection.
