Trump and Zelenskyy hold “very productive” meeting in Rome

US President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had a “very productive” meeting on Saturday in Rome, a White House official said, as both leaders attended the funeral of Pope Francis.

According to a spokesman for Zelenskyy’s office, the two leaders met privately for about 15 minutes inside St. Peter’s Basilica and agreed to hold a second meeting later in the day. Their teams were working to finalize arrangements.

The meeting, their first since a tense encounter in the Oval Office in February, comes at a pivotal moment in negotiations aimed at ending the ongoing conflict between Ukraine and Russia.

“President Trump and President Zelenskyy met privately today and had a very productive discussion. More details about the meeting will follow,” said Steven Cheung, White House communications director.

Andriy Yermak, Zelenskyy’s chief of staff, described the meeting as “constructive” in a post on social media.

Trump, who has been urging both sides to agree to a ceasefire, said on Friday that talks between his envoy and Russian leaders had been productive, and he called for a high-level meeting between Kyiv and Moscow to finalize an agreement. He warned that his administration would walk away from peace efforts if a deal is not reached soon.