1 week Ago By Sònia Sánchez
One of the most anticipated images of the Vatican ceremony this Saturday was that of the President of the United States, Donald Trump, and the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, speaking face to face for the first time since the The image has not been released, at least not yet, but when Pope Francis' funeral was already underway, it was revealed that Trump and Zelensky had met briefly just before the service began. This was explained by the Ukrainian president's spokesman, Serhi Nikiforov, and also by White House communications director Steven Cheung, who assured that Trump and Zelensky had "a very productive conversation." The meeting comes the day after Trump's draft proposal for peace negotiations was leaked, a plan that presents a much more acceptable scenario for Vladimir Putin than for Zelensky, since Russia would maintain control over all the territories it has occupied.
Calls for peace and against "the pain of war" were very present this Saturday at Pope Francis' funeral ceremony at St. Peter's Basilica in Rome. The homily leader for the ceremony, the Dean of the College of Cardinals, Giovanni Battista Re, recalled the late Pope's struggle to end armed conflicts, in a clear allusion to both the Middle East and the war in Ukraine.
Battista Re's speech, in fact, contained a strong political message, recalling Francis's own calls to "build bridges, not walls," a reference the late Pope had made to Donald Trump on several occasions and which was greeted with a standing ovation by the audience gathered in Piazza Sant Pere. References to Francis's struggle for "migrants and refugees," including his first official trip to Lampedusa, were also widely applauded. The cardinal also recalled the late Pope's staunch defense of the most marginalized groups and the fight against climate change.
But beyond the speeches, the final farewell to the reformist pontiff also paved the way for a new step toward peace negotiations, allowing Zelensky and Trump to meet for the first time since their controversial meeting at the White House on February 28. Zelensky, who abandoned his military-green T-shirt for a day to comply with Vatican protocol, was greeted with applause by the faithful present in Sant Pere Square when he appeared on the screens. The Ukrainian president was not wearing a tie but did wear a black jacket, halfway between a blazer and a military uniform.
The one who did break protocol was Donald Trump, who opted for navy blue instead of the traditional black worn by all civilian guests at the ceremony. Both leaders were seated in the front row of the authorities' area, but at opposite ends. Trump and Macron make peace During the funeral mass, the moment of peace also saw the handshake between Donald Trump and French President Emmanuel Macron, along with other heads of state such as Spanish King Felipe VI, who were seated nearby.
Pope Francis's funeral has, in fact, become almost a political summit, with the presence of up to 130 government delegations from around the world, around fifty heads of state, and a dozen monarchs. The numbers were considerably higher than those for Pope Benedict XVI's funeral in 2023, but similar, and perhaps even somewhat lower, than those for Pope John Paul II's farewell in 2005. Among the notable absentees this time was Russian President Vladimir Putin, who likely wanted to avoid the arrest warrant.
All the dignitaries were seated to the right of the pontiff's coffin in front of St. Peter's Basilica, arranged in alphabetical order by the French name of the country, placing the United States close to Spain and France but far from Ukraine. Those closest to the coffin were Argentine President Javier Milei, representing Pope Francis's home country; Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni; and Italian President Sergio Mattarella.
Behind the scenes at the ceremony, Trump also met briefly with outgoing German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, according to White House sources. Other leaders present included British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, Prince William of England, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva; European Council President António Costa; and European Parliament President Roberta Metsola, among others. Among the general public, the presence of activist and WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange was also surprising.
He attended the funeral with his wife, as she herself posted on social media. In the last few hours, But he also stated that Crimea "will remain in Russia," a point that did not please Zelensky at all. In an interview with the magazine The US president has directly stated that "Crimea will be Russian" and that "Zelensky understands that.
" Regarding the remaining occupied territories, the US plan published by Reuters recognizes Russian dominance up to the front line, which covers a fifth of Ukraine. In return, Putin would waive his claim to the unconquered areas of Luhansk, Donetsk, Kherson, and Zaporizhia provinces, and would withdraw from the Kharkiv region. He would also have to return control of the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant, which would remain on Ukrainian territory but under US administration, reports Albert Sort.
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