By Herald views
President Donald Trump cast doubt on Vladimir V. Putin’s willingness to end the war in Ukraine following a private meeting with President Volodymyr Zelensky on the sidelines of Pope Francis’s funeral on Saturday.
In a post on his Truth Social
platform, Trump suggested that Putin might be stringing him along, citing
Russia’s recent missile strikes on Kyiv. “There is no reason for Putin to be
shooting missiles into civilian areas,” Trump wrote. “It makes me think that
maybe he doesn’t want to stop the war, he’s just tapping me along.”
The remarks came after Trump
and Zelensky were seen in deep conversation inside St. Peter’s Basilica shortly
before the funeral began. The White House described the 15-minute meeting as
“very productive,” while Zelensky called it a “very symbolic meeting that has
the potential to become historic.”
It was the first face-to-face
encounter between the two leaders since a tense Oval Office meeting in
February, where Trump told Zelensky he was “not winning” against Russia and had
“no cards to play.”
A Shift in Tone, Or a
Stalemate?
Trump’s latest comments marked
a notable shift from his previous assertions that Moscow and Kyiv were “very
close to a deal” following three hours of talks between his envoy, Steve
Witkoff, and Putin on Friday. The Kremlin later confirmed that Putin had
expressed Russia’s readiness for direct negotiations with Ukraine “without
preconditions.”
Yet Trump’s social media post
suggested skepticism. He floated the idea of applying financial pressure on
Russia, asking whether “Banking or Secondary Sanctions” might be necessary to
force Moscow’s hand.
The Ukrainian delegation,
however, struck a more optimistic note. Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha shared
an image of the meeting on X with the caption: “No words are needed to
describe the importance of this historic meeting. Two leaders working for peace
in St. Peter’s Basilica.”
A Funeral, a Meeting, and a
Diplomatic Signal
The encounter took place amid
the solemn backdrop of Pope Francis’s funeral, which drew world leaders from
across the globe. A second photo released by the Ukrainian delegation showed
Trump and Zelensky standing alongside British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer
and French President Emmanuel Macron, whose hand rested on Zelensky’s
shoulder—an apparent signal of Western solidarity.
After their discussion, Trump
and Zelensky walked down the basilica’s steps together, where Zelensky’s
arrival was met with applause from the gathered crowd. Both leaders then took their
seats in the front row for the funeral mass.
A History of Tension
Trump has long taken a hard
line on Ukraine, at times blaming Kyiv for prolonging the war and accusing
Zelensky of obstructing peace talks. His latest remarks, however, suggest a
growing frustration with Putin’s tactics, even as he continues to insist that
Ukraine lacks leverage.
The White House, careful not to
inflame tensions, emphasized the constructive nature of the meeting. But with
Russia escalating strikes and Trump openly questioning Putin’s intentions, the
path to negotiations remains fraught.
For now, the world is left
watching, waiting to see whether this high-profile encounter at a pope’s
funeral will translate into real diplomacy, or if it was merely another moment
of political theater in a war with no end in sight.
With additional agency report
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