Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he’s hopeful for a “reliable and lasting peace” after meeting one-on-one with Donald Trump, who later questioned whether Russia’s Vladimir Putin genuinely wants to end the war in Ukraine.

Trump and Zelenskyy huddled for about 15 minutes at the Vatican on Saturday just before the funeral for Pope Francis — a sign of Trump’s eagerness for a peace deal by April 30, the 100-day mark of his second term. He has been dialing up pressure for a deal that critics say may favor Russia in his bid to end Europe’s longest conflict since World War II.

“We discussed a lot one on one. Hoping for results on everything we covered,” Zelenskyy said on X. “Very symbolic meeting that has potential to become historic, if we achieve joint results.”

While the White House called the discussion “productive,” Trump later criticized the Russian president in a social media, saying Putin may be stalling to avoid ending the war and suggesting further sanctions might be needed.

There was “no reason for Putin to be shooting missiles into civilian areas” in recent days, Trump posted while en route back to the U.S. “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’?”

Saturday’s meeting with Zelenskyy was Trump’s first since contentious talks in the Oval Office in late February. They discussed a ceasefire, air defenses and fundamental issues of the peace process, according to a person with knowledge of the discussion.

Zelenskyy also met in Rome with French President Emmanuel Macron and plans to meet with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, Ukraine’s foreign minister said.

Pope Francis’ funeral was attended by dozens of international delegations, many of whom were hopeful of getting access to the U.S. leader, who made his first overseas trip since taking office in January.

Zelenskyy's trip to the Vatican followed a massive Russian attack on the Ukrainian capital Kyiv and eastern city of Kharkiv, killing at least 12 people. Thursday’s attack, Russia’s largest airstrike on Ukraine this year, prompted the Ukrainian leader to return early from a visit to South Africa.

Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, met Putin in Moscow on Friday for the fourth time since the U.S. inauguration. On the same day, Zelenskyy appeared to make an overture to Trump when he acknowledged that Ukrainian forces would be unable to regain control over Crimea, saying the U.S. won’t have to commit troops as part of security guarantees but could instead provide intelligence and anti-air capabilities.

Washington’s proposals include the recognition of Russia’s 2014 annexation of Crimea and freezing the conflict largely along existing battle lines, leaving Putin in control of large parts of eastern and southern Ukraine, Bloomberg News has reported. Ukraine would also have to abandon its goal of joining the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.

Trump said Thursday that he’s “using a lot of pressure on both” sides in the war. He said he thinks Putin “wants to make a deal. We’re going to find out very soon.” Asked what concessions Russia has offered, Trump said, “Stopping the war, stopping taking the whole country — pretty big concession.”

Moscow failed to seize Ukraine’s capital and topple its government when it launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022 — in what was conceived as a potential weekslong “special military operation” — because of strong resistance from Kyiv.

While the Russian army now controls about 20% of Ukrainian territory, including Crimea, it hasn’t significantly advanced during the last two years. Kremlin forces seized less than 1% of Ukrainian land in 2024 despite huge losses in personnel and equipment during a grinding ground campaign in Ukraine’s east.

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With assistance from Chiara Albanese.

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