Gallagher met with Yuri Ushakov in Moscow during a three-day visit

This was reported by the Holy See’s Secretariat of State on X, noting that Paul Richard Gallagher, the Vatican Secretary for Relations with States and International Organizations, was in Moscow on a three-day visit.

Gallagher’s meeting with Russian presidential aide Yuri Ushakov was originally scheduled for August 26, but it was postponed by one day. The reasons for the postponement are not given, and the Vatican did not say how long the conversation lasted.

During the trip, Gallagher also visited the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour and met with Metropolitan Anthony of Volokolamsk.

On August 25, he held talks with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. Following the meeting, the representative of the Holy See separately recalled Pope Leo XIV’s call to bring an end to Russia’s war in Ukraine and the suffering of the civilian population.

Gallagher also said that the Holy See is ready to support any effort to achieve peace in the current international context. This week, on August 25, CIA Director John Ratcliffe was also in Moscow; Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the purpose of the trip was to “establish contact between the intelligence services”.

Sources

• Vatican News report on Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher’s visit program to Russia, which lists a meeting with Yuri Ushakov for August 26, 2026; it also mentions that the program
• Radio Liberty