Two Unexpected Moscow Visits Raise Questions About Next Stage of Ukraine Conflict

On August 25, Moscow received not only CIA Director John Ratcliffe but also the head of the Vatican’s diplomatic service, Paul Gallagher. The coincidence is difficult to regard as insignificant. Moscow Accepts the Vatican’s 'Good Offices' After meeting Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, Gallagher said the Vatican was ready to offer any “good offices” in the hope of helping resolve the conflict in Ukraine. Lavrov had previously described the idea of holding Russian-Ukrainian negotiations under Vatican mediation as an “inelegant” arrangement. His main argument was that it would be inappropriate and aesthetically awkward for two predominantly Orthodox countries to discuss the broader causes of the conflict, including church-related issues, on exclusively Catholic territory.