Trump, Zelensky meet at Vatican for ‘good talks’ during Pope’s funeral in bid to revive Ukraine peace efforts

US President Donald Trump and Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky, in Rome for the funeral of Pope Francis, have met one-on-one in a marble-lined Vatican basilica to try to revive faltering efforts to end Russia’s war with Ukraine.

MrZelensky said the meeting could prove historic if it delivers the kind of peace he is hoping for, and a White House spokesman called it “very productive”.

The two leaders, leaning in close to each other with no aides around them while seated in St Peter’s Basilica, spoke for about 15 minutes, according to Mr Zelensky’s office, and images of the meeting released by Ukrainian and US officials.

The meeting at the Vatican, their first since an angry encounter in the Oval Office in Washington DC in February, comes at a critical time in negotiations aimed at bringing an end to fighting between Ukraine and Russia.

After Pope Francis’ funeral service, Mr Trump boarded Air Force One and departed Rome.

While in the air he published a social media post in which he took a tough tone on Russian President Vladimir Putin.

“There was no reason for Putin to be shooting missiles into civilian areas, cities and towns, over the last few days,” Mr Trump posted on Truth Social.

Twelve people were killed on Thursday when a missile fired by Russia hit a Kyiv apartment block.

“It makes me think that maybe he doesn’t want to stop the war, he’s just tapping me along, and has to be dealt with differently, through ‘Banking’ or ‘Secondary Sanctions?’ Too many people are dying!!!,” Mr Trump wrote.

Mr Trump’s post was a departure from his usual rhetoric which has seen the toughest criticism directed at Mr Zelensky, while he has spoken positively about Mr Putin.

In a post on social media platform Telegram, Mr Zelensky wrote: “Good meeting. One-on-one, we managed to discuss a lot. We hope for a result from all the things that were spoken about.”

He said those topics included: “The protection of the lives of our people. A complete and unconditional ceasefire. A reliable and lasting peace that will prevent a recurrence of war.”

Mr Zelensky added: “It was a very symbolic meeting that has the potential to become historic if we achieve joint results. Thank you, President Donald Trump!”

In one photograph released by Mr Zelensky’s office, the Ukrainian and US leaders sat opposite each other in a hall of the basilica and were leaning in towards each other in conversation.

No aides could be seen in the image.

In a second photograph, from the same location, Mr Zelensky, Mr Trump, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron were shown standing in a tight huddle.

Macron had his hand on Mr Zelensky’s shoulder.

After Mr Trump and Mr Zelensky met in the basilica, the two men joined other world leaders outside in Saint Peter’s Square at the funeral service for Pope Francis, who made the pursuit of peace, including in Ukraine, a motif of his papacy.

Italian Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, who gave the sermon at the funeral service, recalled how Pope Francis did not stop raising his voice to call for negotiations to end conflicts.

“War always leaves the world worse than it was before: it is always a painful and tragic defeat for everyone,” the cardinal said.

Mr Putin hailed on Saturday what he said was the complete failure of an offensive by Ukrainian forces in Russia’s Kursk region after the Kremlin said they had been expelled from the last village they had been holding.

However, Ukraine denied that its forces had been expelled from Kursk and said they were also still operating in Belgorod, another Russian region bordering Ukraine.

Gerasimov told Mr Putin that the last occupied settlement in the Kursk region, the village of Gornal, had been “liberated from Ukrainian units” on Saturday.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Saturday that Russia was ready for direct negotiations with Ukraine without preconditions.

“During yesterday’s talks with Trump’s envoy Witkoff, Vladimir Putin confirmed that the Russian side is ready to resume the negotiation process with Ukraine without preconditions,” Peskov told journalists.

with DPA