US President Donald Trump flew briefly this weekend into a European continent he has thrown into chaos in recent months, paying respects to Pope Francis at his funeral, but also meeting with President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine at a critical moment that may decide both the country’s boundaries and its fate.
Trump was on the ground in Rome for about 14 hours, and left immediately after the services for the pope in St. Peter’s Square, stopping only for handshakes or greetings with a few of the Presidents, Prime Ministers, royals and religious leaders who came to the ceremony.
It was a startlingly fast turnaround for the first overseas trip of a new President, and left no time for discussion of his tariffs on the European Union, his turn towards normalising relations with Russia or his insistence that Europeans must take far larger responsibility for their own defence.
Trump told aides he wanted to make it back to his golf resort in New Jersey before the end of the day.
The pageantry of the funeral, including the seating of dignitaries and a moment in the service when world leaders joined in handshakes of peace, lent itself to diplomatic tea-leaf reading. But Trump’s meeting of 15 minutes or so with Zelensky was surrounded with a symbolism and mystery of its own.
Photographs of the session released by Ukraine showed that the meeting took place in St. Peter’s Basilica, the two men perched on cushioned metal chairs, deep in conversation as they waited for the services to begin. It was a remarkable scene — an impromptu meeting between two men who have made no secret of their deep dislike and distrust for each other.
It was the first time they had seen each other since their contentious encounter in the Oval Office in late February, which ended in a televised argument over Trump’s turn away from Kyiv, and towards a new relationship with Russia. Zelensky was told to leave the White House, his lunch left uneaten and an economic partnership deal left unsigned.
A White House spokesman, Stephen Cheung, called Saturday’s encounter at the funeral a “very productive discussion”, but gave no details. In a later post on X, Zelensky described the brief talk as a “good meeting” where the pair discussed “a lot one on one”, including security guarantees to make sure Russia does not use a cease-fire as an opportunity to rearm and attack again.
Trump’s speedy departure came despite a suggestion from a Ukrainian spokesman that more talks would take place in Rome on Saturday. After Trump boarded Air Force One to leave, the spokesman then said a second meeting would not occur because of the “very tight schedules of the Presidents”.
The short meeting came at a critical moment in the push to end the war between Ukraine and Russia, with Trump trying to push Zelensky and President Vladimir V. Putin into direct talks.
In the absence of more substantive meetings, Trump’s every handshake and conversation was scrutinised for political significance at a moment of trans-Atlantic discord. He briefly greeted Ursula von der Leyen, the President of the European Commission, the executive arm of the European Union, who was sitting a few chairs down from him. In the past three months, von der Leyen was conspicuously absent from the leaders visiting the White House.
He chatted briefly with Macron, Zelensky and Starmer before the services began.
The office of Meloni, who has a friendly relationship with Trump, released photos showing him with his hand on her shoulder and another showing her walking beside Trump and his wife Melania, apparently in conversation, inside St. Peter’s Basilica. Neither Meloni’s office nor the White House released any statements suggesting that substantial talks took place.
New York Times News Service