Media report details of Zelenskyy and Trump's conversation in Vatican

This was reported by Axios, citing its own sources.

Anonymous sources revealed details of the meeting between Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the Vatican. According to them, Zelenskyy urged the U.S. president to increase pressure on Putin and to return to the idea of an immediate ceasefire.

Reportedly, before Pope Francis's funeral, Ukraine received hints that Trump was open to a meeting. However, Zelenskyy's advisers expressed concerns due to the negative experience of their Oval Office meeting on February 28.

“Nothing was finalized in advance, and the idea was initially that they would try to meet after the funeral, one of the sources said. But then the leaders bumped into each other upon arrival. They found a spot to meet alone in St. Peter's Basilica,” Axios wrote.

After the conversation, according to sources, Zelenskyy was convinced that, for the first time, he had managed to influence Trump’s perception of Putin.

Zelenskyy insisted on returning to the idea of an immediate ceasefire—a proposal supported by Ukraine but rejected by Russia. According to a source, Trump expressed agreement, although the White House has not confirmed this.

Anonymous sources also noted that Zelenskyy emphasized at the meeting that he does not recognize Crimea as Russian, and Trump assured him that he does not demand such recognition from Ukraine.

The U.S. president insisted on the swift signing of a beneficial agreement, to which Zelenskyy responded that he was ready for compromises to end the war but required reliable security guarantees.

• On April 26, Volodymyr Zelenskyy met with Donald Trump for the first time at the funeral of the Pope, following a dispute in the White House at the end of February.
• After the April 26 meeting, the U.S. president issued a statement criticizing Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin.
• On April 27, media reported that Donald Trump himself insisted on holding personal talks with Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the Vatican.
• Later, Donald Trump suggested that the President of Ukraine might be willing to give up the Russian-annexed Crimea.