Pope Leo presses Putin for safe routes for 2,000 in Oleshky

Pope Leo XIV asked Russian President Vladimir Putin to support a humanitarian ceasefire in Oleshky, where about 2,000 civilians need evacuation routes, Vatican News reported on October 17.

The request focuses on a Russian-held Ukrainian city that had about 24,000 residents before the war and has faced shortages of medicine, food and utilities, according to reports cited by Newsweek.

The Holy See Press Office described “the grave humanitarian situation in the city” in a Vatican statement. Leo sought a pause that would permit aid to enter and allow residents to depart voluntarily and safely, the statement said.

Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican secretary of state, said Leo initiated the call to advocate for Oleshky’s civilians. “I hope that, in response to the Holy Father’s request, President Putin will agree to do what the Pope has asked,” Parolin said, according to Vatican News.

Parolin added: “The fact that he accepted the call and spoke with the Pope may, I hope, be a sign that the Pope’s request will indeed be carried out.” The Holy See said Leo also “reaffirmed the Holy See’s commitment to promoting dialogue and peace.”

Vatican News said Leo’s previous known phone conversation with Putin was in June 2025. Newsweek said it emailed the Holy See and Russia’s foreign ministry for comment on Saturday.

Oleshky is in Ukraine’s Kherson region on the Dnipro River, near the line dividing Russian-held territory from Ukrainian forces. Newsweek reported that Russian troops captured the city on the first day of Moscow’s full-scale invasion in February 2022.

An Associated Press report published Saturday and cited by Newsweek said residents have lacked reliable electricity, heating and running water, while medicine and food have been scarce for months. The Associated Press reported that roads out of Oleshky are mined and that each side has blamed the other for the crisis.

The Associated Press also reported that Russia, as the occupying power, is required under international law to ensure civilians have essential supplies and has made no commitment to the Vatican request.

The appeal came while Leo was hospitalized in Rome’s Gemelli Hospital after surgery on Tuesday to remove the lower lobe of his right lung, Vatican News said. Newsweek previously reported that the operation confirmed lung adenocarcinoma, the most common type of lung cancer, and that surgeons removed the affected tissue without complications.

Doctors Luigi Carbone and Stefano Margaritora said in a release cited by Vatican News that Leo “underwent blood tests and a chest X-ray [Friday] morning, which confirmed the steady improvement in his overall condition.” They said respiratory physiotherapy continued and that the 71-year-old could carry out ordinary daily activities without help.

Vatican News said Leo celebrated Mass in a room on the hospital’s 10th floor and distributed Communion. Atlas360 reported October 12 that the Vatican had canceled his public appearances through October 20.

Source: news report, Newsweek, October 17, 2026