US President Donald Trump, who is in Rome to attend Pope Francis' funeral, and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky met privately inside the Vatican's vast basilica on Saturday (26 April 2025), in what is believed to be a bid to break the deadlock in talks to end the Russia-Ukraine war.

Earlier on Friday, Trump said that Russia and Ukraine were "very close to signing a deal." Trump made the comments hours after US President Donald Trump's special envoy Steve Witkoff met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on Friday.

Trump said it was a "good day" for talks. The Kremlin described the talks as "constructive," although no one from Ukraine was present at the talks.

Trump had earlier said on social media that most of the key points of the deal had been agreed upon. He urged Russia and Ukraine to hold a "high-level" meeting and "sign the deal."

However, it was not known how much progress was made on the agreement during Trump's meeting with Zelenskyy yesterday. Zelenskyy said that the meeting could become important in history if it produces the desired results in bringing peace.

A White House spokesman described the meeting as "very productive."

No one else was seen at the meeting in St. Peter's Basilica. Zelensky's office said the two leaders sat close to each other and spoke for about 15 minutes.

It was the first meeting between the two leaders since a heated meeting in the Oval Office in Washington last February. The two leaders met at a crucial time in talks to end the war.

After the meeting, Zelensky wrote in a post on Telegram, "It was a good meeting. We were able to discuss a lot of things in private. We expect something fruitful from the discussions."

Zelensky wrote, "Among the topics discussed were the protection of the lives of our people, a complete and unconditional ceasefire, and a reliable and lasting peace that will prevent the recurrence of war in the future."

White House Communications Director Steven Cheung said the two leaders met privately. They had "very constructive discussions." Details will be released later.