Rome: US President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy met briefly Saturday before the funeral for Pope Francis as the American leader steps up the pressure to end Russia’s war against Ukraine.
Zelenskyy’s office had said teams were making arrangements for the leaders to talk again Saturday, but Trump went directly to the Rome airport after the funeral and boarded Air Force One for the 10-hour flight back to the United States, which seemed to rule out a second in-person conversation.
The White House said their discussion was “very productive” and that more details would be released later. The meeting lasted about 15 minutes inside St Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican just before they took their seats for the outdoor funeral service.
Zelenskyy said “good meeting” on social media after the funeral. “We discussed a lot one on one. Hoping for results on everything we covered. Protecting lives of our people. Full and unconditional ceasefire. Reliable and lasting peace that will prevent another war from breaking out,” he wrote. “Very symbolic meeting that has potential to become historic, if we achieve joint results. Thank you.”
The meeting took place hours after Trump said on social media, after he arrived in Italy late Friday, that Russia and Ukraine should meet for “very high level talks” on ending the three-year war sparked by Russia’s invasion.
Trump has pressed both sides to agree to a ceasefire. His special envoy, Steve Witkoff, had met earlier Friday with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow, and Trump said both sides were “very close to a deal.”