Trump questions Putin’s desire for peace after meeting Ukraine’s Zelensky at the Vatican

ROME - US President Donald Trump and his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky

met briefly in the hush of St Peter’s basilica

before Pope Francis’s funeral on April 26 in their first encounter since a noisy White House clash, and the US president later cast doubt on whether Russian leader Vladimir Putin wants a peace deal.

Mr Zelensky said they discussed a possible unconditional ceasefire with Russia and was “hoping for results” from a “very symbolic meeting that has the potential to become historic”.

After leaving Rome, Mr Trump indicated a new approach to the Russian president.

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

“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!!!”

The war cast a shadow over Pope Francis’s funeral. As it took place, Russia claimed its forces had

“fully liberated” the border Kursk region

.

Ukraine insisted however that its army was still fighting in Kursk, Russian territory which it hopes to use as a bargaining chip in any future peace talks.

Mr Trump and Mr Zelensky sat face-to-face, leaning forward in deep discussion in a corner of the basilica, as the Pope’s wooden coffin lay in front of the altar before the funeral began, according to images released by the Ukrainian presidency.

“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,” Mr Zelensky wrote on X.

An aide to Mr Zelensky described the meeting as “constructive” and the White House called it “a very productive discussion”.

The US president flew out of Rome immediately after the funeral mass and there were no further talks.

But the two leaders also briefly huddled inside the basilica with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and French Prime Minister Emmanuel Macron.

Mr Macron’s office described the exchanges as “positive” and he later met Mr Zelensky one-on-one.

Britain said Mr Starmer and Mr Zelensky “discussed positive progress made in recent days” and agreed to “continue working intensively with international partners to drive forward the next stages of planning”.

In St Peter’s Square, Mr Trump rubbed shoulders with dozens of world leaders, many keen to raise the tariffs he has unleashed.

But it was the meeting with Mr Zelensky that drew the most interest as the US leader pushes for a peace deal.

Both sides had kept the prospects of a meeting vague ahead of the funeral with Mr Trump saying only it was “possible”.

Tensions had been high since Mr Trump and Vice-President J.D. Vance berated Mr Zelensky in the Oval Office on Feb 28, calling him ungrateful for the billions of dollars of US military assistance given since Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022.

Blame game

Mr Trump, while calling on Mr Putin to stop Russia’s attacks, has recently blamed Mr Zelensky for the war and the continuing bloodshed.

Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, triggering a conflict that has left tens of thousands dead.

Mr Trump has pushed Mr Zelensky to accept concessions such as acknowledging that Crimea, which Moscow seized in 2014, will remain in Russian hands under any deal to stop the conflict.

After arriving in Rome, Mr Trump said there had been progress in talks and pushed for the Russian and Ukrainian leaders to meet.

“They are very close to a deal, and the two sides should now meet, at very high levels, to ‘finish it off’,” he posted on his Truth Social platform.

“Most of the major points are agreed to,” he said.

Mr Putin on April 25 discussed the “possibility” of direct talks with Ukraine in a meeting with Mr Witkoff, according to a Kremlin aide.

He told Mr Witkoff that Russia is ready to resume talks with Ukraine “without preconditions”, the Kremlin added on April 26.

The Putin-Witkoff came just after a top

Russian general was killed in a car bomb attack

outside Moscow.

An increasingly frustrated Mr Trump last week threatened to walk away from peace efforts if he does not see progress towards a ceasefire.

Few meetings

The US president, accompanied by his wife Melania, was making the first foreign trip of his second term.

It put him centre-stage of a major diplomatic gathering with some 50 heads of state, including 10 reigning monarchs, and Britain’s Prince William.

The trip also came after he rattled European allies by imposing sweeping tariffs, although he at least temporarily has backed down from the most severe measures.

The US president shook hands with EU chief Ursula von der Leyen. The two have agreed to meet, a European Union spokesperson said.

Other leaders also swarmed Mr Trump.

One person he did not meet: his predecessor Joe Biden. Mr Trump has repeatedly disparaged Mr Biden, a devout Catholic attending independently with wife Jill and sitting five rows behind his successor.

Previously, other presidents have taken their predecessors with them on Air Force One to papal funerals.

Official Vatican images showed Mr and Mrs Trump stopping by the closed coffin in St Peter’s Basilica.

Mr Trump, in a dark blue suit and tie, and his wife Melania, wearing a black veil, then took front row seats for the service.

Mr Trump had said any meetings would be quick and added: “Frankly it’s a little disrespectful to have meetings when you’re at the funeral of the Pope.” AFP