U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar met with Pope Leo XIV at the Vatican Friday with a group of Ukrainians who are working to help return more than 19,000 children abducted by Russian forces during the war.
Klobuchar has pushed for support for Ukraine following the Russian invasion of that country in 2022. The Minnesota Democrat was invited by the Ukrainians to join their delegation advocating for the return of children.
“Pope Leo is a true moral force for peace and justice and a champion for children around the world. It was an honor to meet him as part of our mission to bring home the Ukrainian children abducted by Russia and chart a path towards peace and healing for Ukraine,” said Klobuchar, in a statement. “We cannot accept a world where children are abducted during wartime and used as hostages for negotiations. The United States must remain steadfast in our support for Ukraine’s fight for freedom, and we should all heed Pope Leo’s example of serving those in need, pursuing the common good, and calling for peace.”
Also during her meeting, Klobuchar presented the Pope with a resolution honoring the victims and survivors of the mass shooting at the Annunciation Catholic Church and School in Minneapolis this summer.
During her visit to Rome, Klobuchar also spoke met with other Vatican officials to talk about efforts to return children abducted by Russia. Klobuchar has worked on legislation aimed at the recovery of Ukrainian children with U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley, an Iowa Republican.
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The Ukrainian delegation includes four children who were taken by Russian forces and have been reunited with their families.
There have been 19,546 confirmed reports of unlawful deportations and transfers of Ukrainian children to Russa, Belarus or Russian-occupied territory in Ukraine, according to Ukrainian authorities. As of Oct. 9, about 1,800 have been returned.
According to a State Department report on human trafficking, Russia recruits or uses child soldiers, has a state-sponsored policy or pattern of human trafficking, and is among the worst hubs globally for human trafficking.
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