Pope's Call for Prisoner Release Amidst Peace Plan Discussions for Ukraine

"Release all prisoners." The Pope, at the end of the general audience, makes a general appeal though it seems to be directed at the latest peace plan for Ukraine, which Erdogan is also reportedly working on: "Let us think - he said - of the Holy Land, of Palestine, of Israel, of the tormented Ukraine. Let us think of the prisoners of war. May the Lord move the will to free them all. And speaking of prisoners, those who are tortured come to mind. The torture of prisoners is a very ugly thing. It is not human. Let us think of so many tortures that hurt the dignity of the person. And so many tortured. May the Lord help everyone and bless everyone." In these days, Novaya Gazeta Europe has released news of a supposed proposal for a peace plan for Ukraine supported by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The plan envisages freezing the conflict along the current front line, the commitment of the USA and Russia not to resort to nuclear weapons under any circumstances, the guarantee that Ukraine will remain non-aligned until 2040, the year in which, according to the plan, referendums on the future of the country would be held, and with an exchange of all prisoners of war, and the commitment of Russia not to oppose the possible accession of Ukraine to the European Union. Novaya Gazeta Europe maintains that, according to a well-informed source, both Moscow and Kiev would be examining a draft of the document, which would be based on negotiations conducted shortly after the start of the conflict, in 2022. According to the source, "the peace plan would probably gain the support of a number of European politicians and will also be proposed to countries in the global south." However, Novaya Gazeta Europe writes that "this is at least the ninth draft of this kind and it is unlikely that this latest proposal will be adopted."