Zelenskyy invites Pope Leo to Ukraine as pontiff tells journalists to protect free speech

Pope urges media to end polarisation, reject the paradigm of war and to use artificial intelligence responsibly

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Volodymyr Zelenskyy has invited Pope Leo XIV to Ukraine as the new pontiff urged journalists to end a polarising “war on words”.

In a post on Telegram on Monday, the Ukrainian president revealed he had spoken to Leo, the first US leader of the Roman Catholic church, as the new pontiff was finishing a speech to thousands of journalists in the Vatican.