Pope Francis holds a news conference as he returns to the Vatican following his apostolic journey to Hungary, aboard the plane, April 30, 2023. [Source: Reuters]

The Vatican is involved in a peace mission to try to end the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, Pope Francis said, adding that it was also ready to help repatriate Ukrainian children taken to Russia or Russian-occupied land.

The pope added that he had spoken about the situation in Ukraine with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban and with Metropolitan (bishop) Hilarion, a representative of the Russian Orthodox Church in Budapest.

Since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, Francis has pleaded for peace practically on a weekly basis, and has repeatedly expressed a wish to act as a broker between Kyiv and Moscow. His offer has so far failed to produce any breakthrough.

Pope Francis, 86, has said previously that he wants to visit Kyiv but also Moscow on a peace mission.

Ukraine Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal met the pope at the Vatican on Thursday and said he had discussed a “peace formula” put forward by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy.

Shmyhal also asked for help in the repatriation of children. Kyiv estimates nearly 19,500 children have been taken to Russia or Russian-occupied Crimea since Moscow invaded in February last year, in what it condemns as illegal deportations.

Francis, who appeared in relatively good condition during the trip, also spoke of his health following his hospitalisation in late March for what the Vatican said at the time was bronchitis.

He said he felt a strong pain at the end of his general audience on Wednesday, March 29 and tried to sleep.

A part of one of his lungs was removed when he was a young man in Argentina more than half a century ago.

The pope said there were no changes to plans to go to Lisbon in August for an international youth gathering and then separately to Marseilles and Mongolia.