Axios learns details of brief conversation between Zelenskyy and Trump at Vatican

US media outlet Axios has learned details from sources about the conversation between US President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the Vatican, where they both attended the funeral of Pope Francis.

As reported by Axios, the details were shared by two anonymous sources familiar with the content of the Zelenskyy–Trump meeting.

Before world leaders headed to the Vatican for the pontiff’s funeral, the Ukrainian side reportedly received signals that Trump was open to meeting.

Zelenskyy's advisers were said to be anxious and hesitant about risking another one-on-one conversation with Trump after what happened in the Oval Office on 28 February.

There were no prior arrangements; the idea was simply that Trump and Zelenskyy would try to meet after the funeral. Ultimately, they "bumped into each" after arriving and found a place for a private talk inside St Peter’s Basilica.

The sources said Zelenskyy told Trump that Putin "would not budge" unless the US president puts more pressure on him. Trump reportedly replied that he might have to change his approach to the Russian leader – echoing a post he published after the meeting.

Zelenskyy also urged a return to the original US proposal for an unconditional ceasefire as a "starting point" for peace negotiations – a plan Ukraine had accepted but Russia had rejected.

One of the sources said Trump appeared to agree with this position.

The Ukrainian president reiterated that Ukraine would never recognise Crimea as Russian territory, to which Trump replied that he was not asking for that.

Zelenskyy added that he was "not afraid of making concessions" in order to reach an agreement to end the war but needed strong security guarantees.

Trump was also said to have pressured Zelenskyy during the conversation to swiftly sign the so-called natural resources agreement.

The White House told Axios it would not comment on Trump’s private conversations with world leaders. Zelenskyy’s office also declined to comment.

Previously, Zelenskyy had said that his meeting with Trump had the potential to be historic. The White House also described the meeting as very productive.

That same day, Trump condemned recent Russian strikes on Ukrainian cities and expressed doubt that Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin genuinely wanted to end the war, also threatening him with sanctions.

Later, Trump again described the conversation as "beautiful" and shared his impressions.