Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had private talks with Pope Francis at the Vatican on Saturday, later saying he sought support for his peace plan from the pontiff, who in the past has offered to try to help end the war launched by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine a year ago.

The two leaders spent time in conversation aided by a translator, Fr Marko Gongalo, a Polish priest who works at the Secretariat of State.

The meeting, which lasted some 40 minutes, focused on the humanitarian and political situation in Ukraine following the ongoing war.

The Holy Father assured the President of his constant prayers, as witnessed by his numerous public appeals and invocations to the Lord for peace.

They agreed on the ongoing requirement to continue providing humanitarian aid to the population, and the Pope highlighted the need for "gestures of humanity" towards the most fragile, the innocent victims of the conflict."

Pope Francis gave President Zelensky a bronze sculpture representing an olive branch, a symbol of peace. He also gifted him with the 2019 Document on Human Fraternity for World Peace and Living Together penned by the Pope and the Grand Imam of Al-Ahzar, Ahmad Al-Tayyeb; a book on the Statio Orbis of 27 March 2020 and a volume entitled “An Encyclical on Peace in Ukraine.”

On his part, the Ukrainian President brought the Holy Father a work of art crafted from a bulletproof plate and a painting entitled “Loss” on the killing of children during conflict.

It is the second meeting between Pope Francis and the Ukrainian President who came to Rome briefly on 8 February 2020 and was received by the Pontiff in the Apostolic Palace, before Russia’s full-out invasion of Ukraine.