The two world leaders were spotted sharing an intimate conversation (Picture: AP)
Donald Trump has expressed doubts over whether Vladimir Putin is ‘tapping me along’ over peace talks after his meeting with Volodymyr Zelensky at the Vatican.
A photo released during the funeral of Pope Francis today showed the US and Ukraine presidents chatting on the sidelines after paying their respects inside St Peter’s Basilica.
Zelensky later said the 15-minute sit-down ‘has the potential to become historic’. Trump posted several photos of the tête-à-tête,along with a lengthy post addressing talks to end the war.
The president,who has been pushing Ukraine to accept a deal,wrote on Truth Social: ‘There was no reason for Putin to be shooting missiles into civilian areas,cities and towns,over the last few days.
‘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!!!’
Following the funeral ceremony’s end,the Ukrainian leader wrote on social media site X: ‘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.
‘Very symbolic meeting that has potential to become historic,if we achieve joint results.’
Further discussions are also likely to take place while both leaders are in Rome.
President Volodymyr Zelensky,right,President Donald Trump,second right,French President Emmanuel Macron,left,and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer (Picture: AP)
Body language expert Judi James spoke to Metro and said the intense political meeting going on in the middle of a historical event had some surprising signs in it.
‘They are sitting hunched,facing each other. It reminded me of two men playing chess,but without the chessboard.
‘Their heads are close,Trump’s got his feet stuffed under his chair and is leaning a bit on his toes – that might be hinting at a more flexible approach.
‘Zelensky’s got his legs displayed. He’s got his feet flat on the floor,which perhaps hence that is being a little bit more stubborn or difficult to move.
‘But it’s the physical closeness of the two of them that it’s quite incredible. This might be how they negotiate behind the scenes at the White House,but we’ve never seen anything one-to-one with this kind of body language before,’ she explained.
The two men looked as if they were ‘playing a chess game’,she said (Picture: AFP)
Ms James added that the face-to-face positioning could imply conflict – but the closeness of the conversation implies they might be trying to ‘broker a deal’.
She added: ‘It looks a lot more promising than it did when they had the meeting in the White House.
‘I see this looking hopeful because both men are showing such an intense desire to talk to each other intimately.’
Zelensky said he had a ‘good meeting’ with Trump,which he called ‘symbolic’.
The Ukrainian president posted on X: ‘Good meeting. 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. Very symbolic meeting that has potential to become historic,if we achieve joint results.’
The last time the two leaders met,their conference quickly descended into a shouting match unforeseen on the world stage,before which saw Trump yelling at Zelensky to make a deal with Russia or count the US out.
Noticeably absent from the Pope’s funeral today is Vladimir Putin – his absence is likely due to the International Criminal Court’s warrant for his arrest.
The pair last spoke in late February when Zelensky visited the White House (Picture: Reuters)
Trump in a Truth Social post afterward began that he had a ‘very meaningful meeting’ and then blasted Zelensky.
‘Much was learned that could never be understood without conversation under such fire and pressure,’ wrote Trump.
‘It’s amazing what comes out through emotion,and I have determined that President Zelenskyy is not ready for Peace if America is involved,because he feels our involvement gives him a big advantage in negotiations.
‘I don’t want advantage,I want PEACE. He disrespected the United States of America in its cherished Oval Office. He can come back when he is ready for Peace.’
But earlier this week,the US suggested they might ‘move on’ from peace talks if progress wasn’t made.
President Donald Trump added: ‘Now,if for some reason,one of the two parties makes it very difficult,we’re just going to say you’re foolish. You are fools,you horrible people.
‘And we’re going to just take a pass. But hopefully,we won’t have to do that.’
Trump previously claimed he could end the war between Russia and Ukraine ‘within 24 hours’.
Trump said last month that he was ‘being a little bit sarcastic’ in his remarks.
U.S. Vice President JD Vance struck a more hopeful tone in Rome a few weeks ago before he spoke with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.
‘I won’t prejudge them [negotiations],but we do feel optimistic that we can hopefully bring this war,this very brutal war,to a close.’
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