Trump, Zelensky and the extraordinary face-to-face meeting just minutes before the Pope’s funeral

The meeting occurred during a tightly choreographed papal funeral attended by dozens of world leaders. Zelensky, who arrived in Rome with his wife, Olena Zelenska, was seated in the front row of St Peter’s Square – a rare protocol exception given Ukraine’s usual diplomatic ranking. Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni said only that a “vacant place” had been filled.

Seating at the funeral was arranged according to country names in French, following longstanding diplomatic norms. As president of Ukraine, Zelensky would typically have been seated in the third row or further back. Instead, he was positioned 11 seats from Trump, allowing for a potential interaction.

In addition to Trump and Zelensky, French President Emmanuel Macron and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer were seen briefly in conversation with the two leaders inside the Basilica before the funeral began. Trump also exchanged greetings with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, his first known interaction with her since returning to office.

In a powerful and at times pointed homily, Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re honoured the life and legacy of Pope Francis at his funeral – while appearing to take a subtle swipe at Trump.

Speaking before 200,000 in St Peter’s Square, the dean of the College of Cardinals recalled Pope Francis’ enduring call for compassion and unity.

“‘Build bridges, not walls’ was an exhortation he repeated many times,” Re said, in what many observers interpreted as a thinly veiled reference to Trump’s immigration policies and his long-standing push to build a wall along the US-Mexico border.

Trump and first lady Melania Trump were seated in the front row of dignitaries at the service, listening intently as Re praised Francis’ global outreach and humanity. “His service of faith … was always linked to the service of humanity in all its dimensions,” the cardinal said.

Re’s mention of the Mass that Francis held in 2016 on the US-Mexico border drew audible applause from the crowds.

‘Very close to a deal’

The timing of the Vatican encounter follows renewed pressure from the US to accelerate progress on a peace deal. Trump, writing on his Truth Social platform shortly after landing in Rome, said Russia and Ukraine were “very close to a deal” and urged high-level talks to finalise an agreement.

“A good day in talks and meetings with Russia and Ukraine,” Trump wrote. “They are very close to a deal, and the two sides should now meet, at very high levels, to ‘finish it off’.”

Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on Friday. Russian presidential aide Yuri Ushakov described the three-hour talks as “constructive and very useful”.

In Kyiv, Zelensky had signalled a willingness to make concessions in the name of progress. Speaking before his departure for Rome, he said Ukraine was open to dialogue “in any format with anyone”, but only if Russia demonstrated readiness to end the war through a “complete and unconditional ceasefire”.

He also acknowledged the likelihood that Ukraine would not join NATO in the near future, calling for realistic security guarantees.

“We have to understand what security guarantees Ukraine needs,” Zelensky said. He suggested these could include cyber defence, European military presence, and US-provided Patriot air defence systems, rather than NATO troops on the ground.

A draft agreement titled “Ukraine Deal Framework”, developed earlier in the week during talks in London and obtained by Reuters, proposes a full ceasefire on land, air, and sea. The document states that the ceasefire would be monitored by the US and supported by third-party countries.

The draft also outlines security guarantees for Ukraine similar to NATO’s Article 5 – the mutual defence clause – without granting full NATO membership. Ukraine would regain control of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, which has been occupied by Russian forces since March 2022.

The proposal includes provisions for a minerals agreement between Ukraine and the US, granting Washington access to Ukrainian rare earth metals in exchange for financial compensation. The funding would be drawn from frozen Russian assets, pending war-related reparations.

However, the framework faces significant political and diplomatic hurdles. Moscow is expected to oppose key elements, including the presence of foreign forces in Ukraine and Ukraine’s right to build its military without restrictions. The draft does not reference Crimea, which Russia annexed in 2014. Witkoff’s proposal reportedly includes US recognition of Russian sovereignty over Crimea, though it does not require Ukraine to do the same – a potential sticking point for Kyiv and its allies.

Direct talks between Ukraine and Russia have not occurred since the early weeks of the 2022 invasion. While both sides have signalled openness to dialogue, the conditions for a formal agreement remain complex and politically sensitive.

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